WASHINGTON President Donald Trump on Friday removed the head of the agency that produces the monthly jobs figures after a report showed hiring slowed in July and was much weaker in May and June than previously reported Trump, in a post on his social media platform, alleged that the figures were manipulated for political reasons and said that Erika
McEntarfer, the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, should be fired. He provided no evidence for the charge.
“I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump said on Truth Social. “She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified.”
Trump later posted: “In my opinion, today’s Jobs Numbers were
ä Markets have worst day since May. PAGE 3B
RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.”
U.S. employers added just 73,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department reported Friday, short of the 115,000 expected. Worse, revisions shaved a stunning 258,000 jobs off May and June payrolls. And the unemploy-
ment rate ticked higher to 4.2% as Americans dropped out of the labor force and the ranks of the unemployed rose by 221,000.
The charge that the data was faked is an explosive one that threatens to undercut the political legitimacy of the U.S. government’s economic data, which has long been seen as the “gold standard” of economic measurement globally Economists and Wall Street investors have long accepted the data as free from political bias.
Trump’s move to fire McEntarfer
Finishing touches
Work continues on Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium as season opener nears
Crews install the midfield logo and other field markers in Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium on Friday. The
season at home on Aug. 30 against Rice. While work continued on the football stadium, the team went through media day at the Stadium Club at Russo Park before beginning practice on Saturday.
ä More on media day in Sports, 1C.
represented another extraordinary assertion of presidential power He has wielded the authority of the White House to try to control the world’s international trade system, media companies, America’s top universities and Congress’ constitutional power of the purse, among other institutions.
“Firing the Commissioner when the BLS revises jobs numbers down (as it routinely does) threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions, and all
See TRUMP, page 5A
Ex-mayor responds to audit of spoil bank
BY CLAIRE TAYLOR and ASHLEY WHITE Staff writers
An investigative report by the Louisiana Legislative Auditor into Lafayette Consolidated Government’s clandestine removal in 2022 of a Vermilion River spoil bank in St. Martin Parish is expected to be released soon, an LCG spokesperson said Thursday
Executive order calls for shuttered facility to house prisoners
BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer
Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola doesn’t have enough beds to house violent offenders, Gov Jeff Landry said in an executive order declaring a state of emergency that will allow the prison to swiftly reopen a notorious part of the facility that was shuttered due to significant safety concerns.
The order, which took effect July 25 and will last until Aug. 23 unless extended, allows the Department
of Public Safety and Corrections to suspend procurement and public bidding rules to hasten repairs to Camp J, which was closed in 2018.
The order indicates the state will transfer violent offenders “who require the highest degree of security” to Angola, but that Angola currently lacks adequate bed space to accommodate them.
Camp J was once one of the most restrictive segments of Angola, used to discipline inmates who fought with weapons or otherwise committed serious offenses. It had four cell blocks that held more than 400 individual cells for solitary confinement. In the first seven months of 2017, dozens of weapons were found at Camp J, Landry’s executive order
says. Within a year, about 85 corrections officers assigned to the complex resigned, retired or were fired “due to the complex challenges presented there.”
Locks for cells in Camp J malfunctioned, allowing inmates to jam cell doors and circumvent security checks, the order says.
“Camp J and the surrounding infrastructure requires facility improvements to adequately hold any violent offenders and to protect the lives of any employees, contractors, or members of the public who may be within Camp J at any time,” Landry’s order says.
The state of emergency applies to Camp J and its surrounding
See ANGOLA, page 5A
The Current online news organization reported Friday that it had obtained a draft of the report and that it doesn’t reveal much that hasn’t already been reported in regular annual LCG audits.
The spoil bank project, The Current wrote, “violated state law, federal law, a St. Martin Parish ordinance and Lafayette’s Home Rule Charter.”
The auditor’s final report has not been released. The report will be based on findings of an investigation launched by the auditor in 2023 prompted by findings from LCG’s independent audit of the 2021-22 fiscal year, when Josh
Angola lacks beds for violent offenders, Landry says
STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP
Cajuns open the
STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK
Gov. Jeff Landry has declared a state of emergency at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola because of a shortage of beds to house violent offenders.
Guillory
BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS
Epstein’s ex-girlfriend moved to prison camp
WASHINGTON Jeffrey Epstein’s former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, has been moved from a federal prison in Florida to a prison camp in Texas as her criminal case generates renewed public attention.
The federal Bureau of Prisons said Friday that Maxwell had been transferred to Bryan, Texas, but did not explain the circumstances Her attorney, David Oscar Markus, also confirmed the move but declined to discuss the reasons for it
Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by the disgraced financier, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. She had been held at a low-security prison in Tallahassee, Florida, until her transfer to Texas.
Prosecutors have said Epstein’s sex crimes could not have been done without Maxwell, but her lawyers have maintained that she was wrongly prosecuted and denied a fair trial.
Maxwell’s case has been the subject of heightened public focus since an outcry over the Justice Department’s statement last month saying that it would not be releasing any additional documents from the Epstein sex trafficking investigation
Maxwell was interviewed at a Florida courthouse over two days last week by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Uribe is sentenced to 12 years house arrest
BOGOTA, Colombia Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe was sentenced Friday to 12 years of house arrest for witness tampering and bribery in a historic case that gripped the South American nation and tarnished the conservative strongman’s legacy
The sentence, which Uribe said will be appealed, followed a nearly six-month trial in which prosecutors presented evidence that he attempted to influence witnesses who accused the lawand-order leader of having links to a paramilitary group in the 1990s.
“Politics prevailed over the law in sentencing,” Uribe said after Friday’s hearing.
Uribe, 73, has denied any wrongdoing. He faced up to 12 years in prison after being convicted Monday
The former president governed from 2002 to 2010 with strong support from the United States. He is a polarizing figure in Colombia, where many credit him for saving the country from becoming a failed state, while others associate him with human rights violations and the rise of paramilitary groups in the 1990s.
Heredia on Monday said she had seen enough evidence to determine that Uribe conspired with a lawyer to coax three former paramilitary group members, who were in prison, into changing testimony they had provided to Ivan Cepeda, a leftist senator who had launched an investigation into Uribe’s alleged ties to a paramilitary group.
Uribe in 2012 filed a libel suit against Cepeda in the Supreme Court. But in a twist, the high court in 2018 dismissed the accusations against Cepeda and began investigating Uribe. Hot dog spill becomes drivers’ wurst nightmare
SHREWSBURY,Pa. A truckload of hot dogs spilled across a Pennsylvania interstate Friday after a crash that briefly clogged the heavily traveled artery in both directions.
“Once those leave the truck and hit the road, that’s all garbage, and it’s still pretty warm,” Shrewsbury Fire Company Chief Brad Dauberman said.
State police said the tractor trailer had an unspecified mechanical problem on Interstate 83 a few miles north of the Maryland line as morning rush hour was wrapping up, causing it to push into a passenger vehicle. When the truck scraped along a concrete divider, its trailer was ripped open and the contents scattered.
A front-end loader was used to scoop up the hot dogs and drop them into a dump truck.
“I can tell you personally, hot dogs are very slippery,” Dauberman said. “I did not know that.”
Some fast-track deportations blocked
Immigrants entered via process called humanitarian parole
BY MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press
WASHINGTON A federal judge agreed on Friday to temporarily block the Trump administration’s efforts to expand fast-track deportations of immigrants who legally entered the U.S. under a process known as humanitarian parole a ruling that could benefit hundreds of thousands of people.
U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb in Washington, D.C., ruled that the Department of Homeland Security exceeded its statutory authority in its effort to expand “expedited removal” for many immigrants.
The judge said those immigrants are facing perils that outweigh any harm from “pressing pause” on the administration’s plans.
The case “presents a question
of fair play” for people fleeing oppression and violence in their home countries, Cobb said in her 84-page order “In a world of bad options, they played by the rules,” she wrote. “Now the Government has not only closed off those pathways for new arrivals but changed the game for parolees already here, restricting their ability to seek immigration relief and subjecting them to summary removal despite statutory law prohibiting the Executive Branch from doing so.”
Fast-track deportations allow immigration officers to remove somebody from the U.S. without seeing a judge first. In immigration cases, parole allows somebody applying for admission to the U.S. to enter the country without being held in detention.
Immigrants’ advocacy groups sued Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to challenge three recent DHS agency actions that expanded expedited removal. A surge of arrests at immigration courts highlights the lawsuit’s high stakes.
The judge’s ruling applies to any noncitizen who has entered the U.S. through the parole process at a port of entry She suspended the challenged DHS actions until the case’s conclusion.
Cobb said the case’s “underlying question” is whether people who escaped oppression will have the chance to “plead their case within a system of rules.”
“Or alternatively will they be summarily removed from a country that — as they are swept up at checkpoints and outside courtrooms, often by plainclothes officers without explanation or charges — may look to them more and more like the countries from which they tried to escape?” she added.
A plaintiffs’ attorney, Justice Action Center legal director Esther Sung, described the ruling as a “huge win” for hundreds of thousands of immigrants and their families Sung said many people are afraid to attend routine immigration hearings out of fear of getting arrested.
“Hopefully this decision will al-
Friday in the Gaza Strip.
Envoy visits Gaza aid site
Efforts to deliver food have been marred by violence and controversy
BY WAFAA SHURAFA, SAM METZ and JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — U.S. President
Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy on Friday visited a food distribution site in the Gaza Strip operated by an Israeli-backed American contractor whose efforts to deliver food to the hunger-stricken territory have been marred by violence and controversy
International experts warned this week that a “worst-case scenario of famine” is playing out in Gaza. Israel’s nearly 22-month military offensive against Hamas has shattered security in the territory of some 2 million Palestinians and made it nearly impossible to safely deliver food to starving people.
Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee toured a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution site in Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city, which has been almost completely destroyed and is now a largely depopulated Israeli military zone.
Hundreds of people have been killed by Israeli fire while heading to such aid sites since May, according to witnesses, health officials and the United Nations human rights office. Israel and GHF say they have only fired warning shots and that the toll has been exaggerated.
In a report issued on Friday, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said GHF was at the heart of a “flawed, militarized aid distribution system that has turned aid distributions into regular bloodbaths.”
Witkoff posted on X that he had spent over five hours inside Gaza in order to gain “a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza.”
He did not request any meetings with U.N. officials in Gaza during his visit, U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters.
Chapin Fay, a spokesperson for GHF, said the visit reflected Trump’s understanding of the stakes and that “feeding civilians, not Hamas, must be the priority.” The aid group says it has delivered over 100 million meals since it began operations in May
All four of the group’s sites established in May are in zones controlled by the Israeli military and have become flashpoints of desperation, with starving
people scrambling for scarce aid.
More than 1,000 people have been killed by Israeli fire since May while seeking aid in the territory, most near the GHF sites but also near United Nations aid convoys, the U.N. human rights office said last month.
The Israeli military says it has only fired warning shots at people who approach its forces, and GHF says its armed contractors have only used pepper spray or fired warning shots to prevent deadly crowding.
Officials at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza said Friday they received the bodies of 13 people who were killed while trying to get aid, including near the site that U.S officials visited. GHF denied anyone was killed at their sites on Friday
The Israeli military said its forces had fired warning shots hundreds of yards away from the aid site at people it described as suspects and said had ignored orders to distance themselves from its forces. It said it was not aware of any casualties but was still investigating.
Another 23 people were killed and dozens wounded near the Israeli-run Zikim Crossing, the main entry point for aid to northern Gaza, according to Dr Mohamed Abu Selmiya, the director of Shifa Hospital, which received the bodies. He said the vast majority of injuries were from gunfire.
The Israeli military said it struck several armed militants in northern Gaza but that the strike “was not conducted near the passage of the humanitarian aid trucks and no damage was caused to them.”
The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said 11 people were killed at another aid distribution point in Gaza City There was no immediate comment from the military on those deaths.
Human Rights Watch said in its report that “it would be near impossible for Palestinians to follow the instructions issued by GHF stay safe, and receive aid, particularly in the context of ongoing military operations.” It cited doctors, aid seekers and at least one GHF security contractor
Building on previous accounts, it described how thousands of Palestinians gather near the sites at night before they open. As they head to the sites on foot Israeli forces control their movements by opening fire toward them. Once inside the sites, they race for aid in a frenzied free-for-all, with weaker and more vulnerable people coming away with nothing, HRW said.
Responding to the report, Israel’s military accused Hamas of sabotaging the aid distribution system, without providing evidence. GHF did not immediately respond to questions about the report
leviate that fear,” Sung said.
Since May, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have positioned themselves in hallways to arrest people after judges accept government requests to dismiss deportation cases After being arrested, the government renews deportation proceedings but under fast-track authority President Donald Trump sharply expanded fast-track authority in January, allowing immigration officers to deport someone without first seeing a judge. Although fast-track deportations can be put on hold by filing an asylum claim, people may be unaware of that right and, even if they are, can be swiftly removed if they fail an initial screening.
“Expedited removal” was created under a 1996 law and has been used widely for people stopped at the border since 2004. Trump attempted to expand those powers nationwide to anyone in the country less than two years in 2019 but was held up in court. His latest efforts amount to a second try
Manhunt launched after 4 killed in
By The Associated Press
A shooting at a Montana bar left four people dead Friday, prompting a lockdown in a neighborhood several miles away as authorities searched for the suspect in a wooded area.
The shooting happened at The Owl Bar in Anaconda, according to the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, which is leading the investigation. The agency confirmed four people were pronounced dead at the scene.
The suspect, who was identified as 45-year-old Michael Paul Brown, lived next door to the bar according to public records.
Authorities said his home was cleared by a SWAT team and that he was last seen in the Stump Town area, which is just west of Anaconda.
More than a dozen officers from local and state police converged on that area, locking it down so no one was allowed in or out. A helicopter also hovered
over a nearby mountainside as officers moved among the trees, said Randy Clark, a retired police officer who lives there. Brown was believed to be armed, the Montana Highway Patrol said in a statement.
At Caterpillars to Butterflies Childcare, a nursery a few blocks from the shooting scene, owner Sage Huot said she’d kept the children inside all day after someone called to let her know about the violence.
“We’re constantly doing practice drills, fire drills and active shooter drills, so we locked down the facility, locked the doors, and we have a quiet spot where we play activities away from all of our windows and doors,” Huot said. Anaconda is about 75 miles southeast of Missoula in a valley hemmed in by mountains. A town of about 9,000 people, it was founded by copper barons who profited off nearby mines in the late 1800s.
White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, center, visits a food distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.-backed organization approved by Israel,
5childrenamong 31 killed in strike on Kyiv
BY ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press
KYIV,Ukraine The Ukrainian capital Kyiv observed an official day of mourning Friday,aday after aRussian drone and missile attack on the city killed31people, including five children, and injured more than 150, officials said.
The youngest victim in Thursday’sstrikes was2 years old, and 16 of the injured were children, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
It was the highest number of children killed and injured in asingle attackon Kyiv since aerial attacks on the city began in October 2022, according to official casualty figures reported by The Associated Press. It was also the deadliest attack on thecitysinceJulylastyear, when 33 were killed.
house killing31civilians including five children in
The death toll rose overnight as emergency crews continued to dig through rubble. The Russian barrage demolishedalarge part of a nine-story residentialbuilding in the city,while more than 100 other buildings were damaged, including homes, schools,kindergartens, medical facilities and universities, officials said. Russia has escalated its attacks on Ukrainian cities in recent months, ignoring calls from Western leaders including U.S. President Donald Trumptostop striking civilianareas aftermore thanthree years of war.The Russian tactic aims to spread terrorand weardown public appetite forthe war.
Russian forces arealso pressing on withtheir grinding war of attrition along the front line, where incremental gains over thepast year have come at thecost of thousands of soldiers on both sides.
than 3,800 Shahed drones, and nearly 260 missiles of varioustypes, 128 of them ballistic, against Ukraine.
He repeated his appeal for countries to impose heavier economic sanctions on Russia to deter the Kremlin, as U.S.-ledpeace efforts have failed to gain traction.
“No matterhow muchthe Kremlin denies (sanctions’)
effectiveness, they are working and must be stronger,” Zelenskyy said.
Putinsaid Friday the conditions that Moscow set out last year fora long-term ceasefire agreement still stand. Putinhas previously made it clear that he will only accept asettlement on his termsand will keep fighting until they’re met
“Any disappointments arise from excessive expectations,” Putin said of negotiations. He did not mention Trumpbyname.
Putin said that he regards recent direct talks in Istanbul between delegations from Russia and Ukraine as valuable,eventhoughthey made no progress beyond exchanges of prisoners of war, and madenoreference to next week’sdeadline imposed by Trump.
In what Ukrainians may see as an ominous note, Putin said that Russia has started production of its newest hypersonic missiles. The Oreshnik’smultiplewarheads that plunge to atarget at speeds up to Mach 10 and cannot be stopped by air defenses, he said.
Ukraine called for an urgent U.N. Security Council meeting to be convened Fri-
day, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybihasaid, in an effortto push Putin into accepting “a full, immediate andunconditional ceasefire.”
Keycityfaces pressure
Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces are under heavy pressure in thestrategic hilltopcity of Chasiv Yar, in the eastern Donetsk region where Russia is making a concerted push to break through defenses after some 18 months of fighting. Zelenskyy said that Russian claimsofcapturing Chasiv YaronThursday were “disinformation.”
“Ukrainian units are holding ourpositions,”Zelenskyy said in hisdaily videoaddress on Thursday evening. Even so, the Institute for theStudy of Warsaidthat Ukraine’shold on the key city is weakening.
“Russian forces will likely complete the seizure of Chasiv Yarinthe coming days, which will open several possible avenuesfor Russian forces to attack Ukraine’s fortress belt —a seriesof fortified cities that form the backbone of Ukraine’s defensive positions” in the Donetsk region, theWashington-based think tank said.
U.S. nuclearsubsrepositionedafter Russianofficial’sremarks
BY WILL WEISSERT Associated Press
WASHINGTON In awarningto
Russia,President DonaldTrump said Friday he’sordering the repositioning of two U.S. nuclear submarines “based on thehighly provocative statements” of the country’sformer president, Dmitry Medvedev,who has raised the prospect of war online.
Trump posted on his social media site that, based on the “highly provocative statements” fromMedvedev,hehad “ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriateregions,justincase these foolish and inflammatory
statements are more than just that.”
Thepresidentadded, “Words areveryimportant, and can often lead to unintended consequences, Ihope this will not be one of those instances.”
It wasn’tclear what impact Trump’sorder would have on U.S. nuclearsubs,which areroutinely on patrol in the world’shotspots, but it comes at adelicate moment in the Trump administration’srelations with Moscow.
Trump has saidthatspecial envoy SteveWitkoff is heading to Russia to push Moscow to agree to aceasefire in its war with Ukraine and has threatened new economic sanctions if progress is not made.
He cuthis 50-daydeadline foraction to 10 days, with that window set to expire next week.
Thepost aboutthe sub repositioning came after Trump, in the wee hours of Thursday morning, had posted that Medvedev was a “failedformer President of Russia” and warned himto“watch his words.” Medvedev responded hourslater by writing, “Russiais right on everything andwill continue to go itsown way.”
And thatback-and-forth followed earlier this week, whenMedvedev wrote, “Trump’s playingthe ultimatumgame with Russia: 50 days or 10” and added, “He should remember 2things: 1. Russia isn’tIsraelor
ALEXANDRIA,Va.— Federal judge T.S. Ellis III, whoselegal scholarship andcommanding courtroom presence wasevident in numerous high-profile trials, died Wednesday after along illness. He was 85 Ellis oversaw the trials of former Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and former U.S.Rep. William “DollarBill” Jefferson as well as the pleadeal of “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh across ajudicial career that lasted more than 35 years. Ellis died at his home in Keswick, according to the Cremation SocietyofVirginia Thomas Selby Ellis III was born inColombia in 1940. He joined the Navyafter receiving an undergraduate degreefrom Princeton, and completed graduate studies at Oxford. He received his law degreefrom Harvard, graduating magna cumlaude. He was appointed to the federal benchby President Ronald Reagan in 1987. His penchant for speaking freely drew raised eyebrows at the prosecution of Manafort, on charges of tax and bank fraud
related to hisworkadvising pro-Russia Ukrainian politicians beforemanaging Trump’scampaign.
Ellis delivered a47-month sentence, and said as an aside that Manafort appearedto have lived “an otherwise blameless life,” a phrase he often usedatcriminalsentencings. Critics who found much to blamein Manafort’s long career working forclients including the tobacco industry and international despots wereoutraged by thecomment.
In 2009, EllissentencedJefferson, aformer Louisiana congressman, to 13 years in prison for taking bribes, including $90,000 foundhidden in his freezer.The case threw multiple curveballs at Ellis, including asexual relationship between akey witness and an investigating FBI agent.
In 2017,Ellis reduced Jefferson’ssentence to time served after aSupreme Court case changed the rules for what constitutes briberyofpublicofficials. He made clear,though, that he believedJefferson’sactionswere criminal,and called his conduct “venal.”
“Publiccorruption is acancer,” he said at the time of Jefferson’sresentencing. “It needs to be prosecuted and punished.”
even Iran. 2. Each new ultimatum is athreat anda step towards war Not between Russia andUkraine but with his own country.”
Askedashewas leaving the White House on Friday evening foraweekend at his estate in New Jersey,aboutwhere he was repositioning thesubs,Trump didn’t offer any specifics.
“Wehad to do that. We just have to be careful,” the president said. “A threat wasmade, and we didn’t thinkitwas appropriate, so Ihave to be very careful.”
Trumpalso said, “I do that on the basis of safety forour people” and “we’re gonna protect our people” and later added of Medvedev,“He
was talking about nuclear.”
“When you talk about nuclear,we have to be prepared,” Trumpsaid. “And we’re totally prepared.” Medvedev was Russia’spresident from 2008 to 2012, while Putin was barred from seeking asecond consecutive term, but stepped aside to let him run again. Now deputy chairman of Russia’sNational Security Council, which Putin chairs, Medvedev has frequently wielded nuclear threats and lobbed insults at Western leaders on social media. Someobservers have argued that Medvedev is seeking to score political points withPutin andRussian military hawks.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By EFREMLUKATSKy
Rescuerslay toys and flowers on thesite of Russia’s Thursday night missile strikethat hita multistoryresidential
Kyiv,Ukraine, Friday.
Corporationfor Public Broadcasting to shut down
BY TED ANTHONY and KEVIN FREKING Associated Press
WASHINGTON The Corporationfor Public Broadcasting, acornerstone of American culturefor generations, announced Friday it would take steps toward its ownclosure after being defunded by Congress —marking the end of anearly sixdecade erainwhich it fueled the production of renowned educational programming,cultural content and even emergency alerts.
The demise of the corporation, known as CPB, is adirect result of President Donald Trump’stargeting ofpublic media, which he has repeatedly said is spreading political and cultural views antithetical to those the United States should be espousing. The closure is expected to have aprofound impact on the journalistic and cultural landscape —inparticular,public radio and TV stations in small communities across the United States.
CPB helpsfund both PBSand NPR, but most of its funding is distributed to more than 1,500 local public radio and television stations around the country
The corporationalso hasdeepties to much of the nation’smost familiar programming, from NPR’s“All Things Considered” to, historically “Sesame Street, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and the documentaries of Ken Burns.
The corporation said its end, 58 years after being signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, would come in an “orderly winddown.”Inastatement, it saidthe decision came afterthe passage through Congress of apackage that clawed back its funding for the next two budget years —about $1.1 billion. Then,the Senate Appropriations Committee reinforced that policy changeThursday by excluding funding for the corporation for the first timein more than 50 years as partofa broaderspending bill.
“Despite the extraordinary efforts of millions of Americans who
called, wrote,and petitioned Congresstopreservefederal funding for CPB, we now face thedifficult reality of closing ouroperations,” said Patricia Harrison, thecorporation’spresidentand CEO Last attemptatfunding fails Democratic members of on the SenateAppropriations Committee made alast-ditch effort this week to save theCBP’s funding.
As part of Thursday’scommittee deliberations, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., authored but then withdrew an amendment to restore CPB funding for the coming budget year.She said she still believed there was apath forward “to fix this before thereare devastatingconsequences for public radio and television stations across thecountry.”
“It’shard to believe we’ve ended up in the situationwe’rein,” she
said. “And I’m going to continue to work with my colleagues to fix it.”
But Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., sounded aless optimistic tone.“Iunderstand yourconcerns, but we all know we litigated this two weeksago,” she said. “Adopting this amendment would have been contrary to what we have already voted on.
Closurewillcomeinphases
CPB saiditinformed employees Friday that most staff positionswill end withthe fiscal year on Sept.30. It said asmall transition team will stay in place until Januarytofinishany remaining work —including, it said, “ensuring continuity for music rights and royalties thatremain essential to thepublic media system.”
“Public media has beenone of the mosttrustedinstitutions in American life, providing educational op-
portunity,emergency alerts, civil discourse, and cultural connection to everycorner of the country,”
Harrison said. “Weare deeply grateful to our partners across the system for theirresilience, leadership, and unwavering dedication to serving the American people.”
NPR stations use millions of dollars in federal money to pay musiclicensing fees.Now,manywill have to renegotiate these deals. That could impact, in particular, outletsthat build their programming around music discovery NPRPresident andCEO Katherine Maher estimated recently, forexample, that some96% of all classical music broadcast in theUnited States is on public radio stations. Federal money forpublic radio andtelevision hastraditionally been appropriated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributesittoNPR and
PBS. Roughly 70% of the money goes directly to the 330 PBS and 246 NPRstationsacrossthe country,although that’sonly ashorthand way to describe its potential impact. Trump, whohas calledthe CPB a“monstrosity,” has long said that public broadcasting displays an extreme liberalbias,helped create the momentum in recent months for an anti-public broadcasting groundswell among his supporters in Congress and around thecountry.Itispart of alarger initiative in which he has targeted institutions —particularly cultural ones —that produce content or espouse attitudesthatheconsiders “un-American.” The CPB’sdemise represents apolitical victory for those efforts.
His impact on the media landscapehas been profound. He has also gone after U.S. government media thathad independence charters, including the venerable Voice of America, ending that media outlet’soperations after many decades.
Trumpalso fired three members of the corporation’sboard of directors in April. In legal action at the time,the fireddirectors said their dismissal was governmental overreach targeting an entity whose charter guarantees it independence.
NEWYORK— The Smithsonian Institution has removed from an exhibit areference to President DonaldTrump’s twoimpeachments, adecision that comes as the White House exerts pressure to offer amore positive —and selective —view of American history.Aspokesperson said the exhibiteventually“will includeall impeachments.”
Alabel referring to impeachment hadbeenaddedin2021tothe National Museum for American History’sexhibitonthe American presidency,inasection called “Limits of Presidential Power.” Smithsonian spokesperson Phillip Zimmermansaid Friday that the
section, which includes materials on the impeachment of President Bill Clintonand theWatergate scandal that helped lead to President Richard Nixon’sresignation, needed to be overhauled. He said thedecision cameafter the museum was “reviewing our legacy contentrecently.”
“Because the other topics in this sectionhad not beenupdated since 2008, thedecision was made to restore the Impeachment case back to its 2008 appearance,” Zimmermansaid in an email.
He said that in September 2021, themuseum installed atemporary label on content concerning Trump’simpeachments. “Itwas intended to be ashort-term measure to address current events at thetime,”hesaid. But the label remained in place.
“A large permanent gallery like TheAmerican Presidency that opened in 2000 requiresasignifi-
cantamount of time and funding to updateand renew,” he said. “A future and updated exhibit will include all impeachments.”
WhiteHouse spokesperson Davis Ingle said theSmithsonian has “highlighted divisive DEI exhibits whichare outoftouch with mainstream America” for too long.
“Weare fully supportive of updating displays to highlight American greatness,”hesaidina statement that did not address the missing reference to Trump’simpeachments.
Trump is only thepresident to have been impeached twice —in 2019, for pushing Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to investigateJoe Biden, who would defeat Trumpinthe 2020 election; andin2021 for “incitement of insurrection,” areference to the Jan. 6siege of the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters attempting to halt congressional certification of
Biden’svictory
TheDemocratic majority in the House voted each time for impeachment. The Republican-led Senate eachtime acquitted Trump. Soon afterTrump’s first impeachment,the historymuseum issued astatement saying thatcurators “will determine whichobjects best represent these historic events for inclusion in the nationalcollection.”
Trump has cut funding, forced outofficials andotherwise demanded changes across arange of Washington cultural institutions, including the Smithsonian, the Library of Congress,the Kennedy Center and the National Endowmentfor the Humanities.
In March, Trumpissued an executive order entitled “Restoring Truthand Sanity to American History,” in whichheallegedthatthe Smithsonian was beholden to “a divisive, race-centered ideology.”
He has placed Vice President J.D.
Vance in charge of an effort to ensure no funding goes to “exhibits or programsthat degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race, or promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with Federal law and policy.” Congressional Democrats issued astatementinAprilcalling Trump’s order a“flagrantattempt to erase Black history.” Last week,artistAmy Sherald canceled aplanned exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery after officialsraised concernsoverher painting “Trans Forming Liberty, 2024,” in whichshe depicts anonbinary transgender person posing as the Statue of Liberty.Sherald is best known forher painting of then-first lady Michelle Obama, whichwas commissioned by the Portrait Gallery News of theTrumpimpeachment label being removed was first reported by The Washington Post.
BY MIKE STOBBE Associated Press
NEW YORK U.S. health of-
ficials have told more than ahalf-dozen of the nation’s top medical organizations that they will no longer help establish vaccination recommendations.
The government told the organizations on Thursday via emailthat their experts are being disinvited from the workgroups that have been thebackbone of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices
The organizations include the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
“I’m concerned and distressed,” said Dr.William Schaffner,aVanderbilt University vaccine expert who for decades has been involvedwith ACIP and its workgroups.
He said the move will likely propela confusingfragmentation of vaccine guidance,aspatientsmay hear the government say one thing and hear their doctors say another
One email said the organizations are“special interest groups and therefore are expected to have a‘bias’ based on their constituency and/or
population that theyrepresent.”
Afederal health official on Friday confirmed theaction, whichwas first reportedby Bloomberg.
Thedecision was the latest developmentinwhathas become asaga involving the ACIP.The committee, created in 1964, makes recommendationsto theCenters for Disease Control andPrevention on how vaccines that havebeen approved bythe Food and DrugAdministration should be used. CDC directors have traditionally almostalways approved those recommendations, which are widely heeded by doctors and greenlight insurance coverage for shots.
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.was aleading voiceinthe antivaccine movement before becoming the U.S. government’stop health official, and in June abruptly fired the entire ACIP after accusing themofbeing too closely aligned with manufacturers. He handpicked replacementsthat include several vaccineskeptics.
Theworkgroups typically include committee members and experts from medical and scientific organizations. At workgroup meetings, membersevaluate data
from vaccine manufacturers and the CDC, and formulate vaccination recommendation proposals to be presented to the full committee.
The structure was created forseveral reasons, Schaffner said. The professional groupsprovide input about what mightand mightnot be possible for doctors to implement.And it helped build respect and trust in ACIP recommendations, having the buy-in of respected medical organizations, he said.
Workgroup membersare vetted for conflictsofinterest, to makesure than no one who had, say,made money from working on ahepatitis vaccine was placed on the hepatitis committee, Schaffner noted.
Alsodisinvited from the groups were theAmerican Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, theAmerican Geriatrics Society,the AmericanOsteopathic Association, the National Medical Association andthe National Foundationfor Infectious Diseases.
Some of the professional organizations have criticized Kennedy’schanges to the ACIP,and three of the disinvitedgroups last month joined alawsuit against the
governmentoverKennedy’s decision to stop recommending COVID-19vaccinesfor most children and pregnant women. In asocial media post
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS By KATIE OyAN
Oneofthe control rooms at the Arizona PBS offices at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication in Phoenix is seen May2
Astuffed Cookie Monster is seated in acontrol room May2atthe Arizona PBS offices at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalismand Mass Communication in Phoenix
government statistics,” Arin Dube, an economist at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, said on X “I can’t stress how damaging this is.”
After Trump’s initial post, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said on X that McEntarfer was no longer leading the bureau and that William Wiatrowski, the deputy commissioner, would serve as the acting director
“I support the President’s decision to replace Biden’s Commissioner and ensure the American People can trust the important and influential data coming from BLS,” Chavez-DeRemer said.
McEntarfer was nominated by Biden in 2023 and became the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics in January 2024. Commissioners typically serve four-year terms but since they are political appointees can be fired.
The commissioner is the only political appointee of the agency, which has hundreds of career civil servants.
The Senate confirmed McEntarfer to her post 86-8 with nowVice President JD Vance among the yea votes.
Previous months revised
Trump focused much of his ire on the revisions the agency made to previous hiring data. Job gains in May were revised down to just 19,000 from a previously revised 125,000, and for June they were cut to 14,000 from 147,000 In July, only 73,000 positions were added. The unemployment rate ticked up to a still-low 4.2% from 4.1%.
“No one can be that wrong? We need accurate Jobs Numbers,”
AUDIT
Continued from page 1A
Guillory was the mayorpresident.
“We were informed by the LLA their final report will be coming in the next few weeks,” LCG Chief Communications Officer Jaimie Boudreaux said Thursday In June, Boudreaux said, parties relevant to the investigation were provided with a copy of the draft investigative auditor’s report and given until July 1 to file a response.
Guillory unleashed a diatribe Thursday on Facebook,
Continued from page 1A
infrastructure within Angola, according to the order
A spokesperson for Landry declined to comment on this story
The Department of Public Safety & Corrections did not answer questions Friday about its plans for Camp J, instead issuing a statement
“The reasons for the repairs needed at Camp J are set forth in the Governor’s Executive Order, JML-25084,” the statement said. “The Department is working to develop a timeline for the neces-
Trump wrote. “She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified. Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can’t be manipulated for political purposes.”
Trump questioned the big revisions, but they are a standard part of the monthly jobs report.
The Labor Department revises its numbers as more data comes in. Particularly since COVID-19, businesses have taken longer to respond to the government’s survey on hiring. As more data has come in later than in the past, the potential for large revisions has increased.
The monthly jobs report has long been closely guarded within
the BLS, with early copies held in safes under lock and key to prevent any leaks or early dissemination.
Slowdown ‘is here’
Economists have been warning that the rift with every U.S. trading partner will begin to appear this summer and the Friday jobs report appeared to sound the bell.
“We’re finally in the eye of the hurricane,” said Daniel Zhao, chief economist at Glassdoor “After months of warning signs, the July jobs report confirms that the slowdown isn’t just approaching it’s here.”
U.S. markets recoiled at the jobs report and the Dow tumbled more than 600 points Friday
Trump has sowed uncertainty in the erratic way he’s rolled the tariffs out — announcing, then suspending them, then coming up with new ones. Overnight, Trump signed an executive order that set new tariffs on a wide swath of U.S. trading partners that go into effect on Aug. 7, and that comes after a flurry of unexpected tariffrelated actions this week.
“There was a clear, significant, immediate, tariff effect on the labor market and employment growth essentially stalled, as we were dealing with so much uncertainty about the outlook for the economy and for tariffs,” said Blerina Uruci, chief U.S. economist for the brokerage T. Rowe Price.
Still, Uruci said the data suggests we could be past the worst, as hiring actually did pick up a bit in July from May and June’s depressed levels.
“I’m not overly pessimistic on the U.S. economy based on this morning’s data,” she said, though she does think that hiring will remain muted in the coming months as the number of available workers remains limited due to reduced immigration and an aging population.
“Because of immigration policy labor supply growth has nearly ground to a halt,” said Guy Berger, senior fellow at the Burning Glass Institute, which studies employment trends. “So we’re going to have very weak employment growth. And we look like southern Europe or Japan.”
Sharp reversal from 2022
Trump has sold the tariffs hikes as a way to boost American manufacturing, but factories cut 11,000 jobs last month after shedding 15,000 in June and 11,000 in May The federal government, where
employment has been targeted by the Trump administration, lost 12,000 jobs Jobs in administration and support fell by nearly 20,000.
Companies have been warning investors that the policy, with some tariffs already in effect while others change or get extended, has made it difficult to make forecasts. Walmart, Procter & Gamble and many others have warned about import taxes raising costs, eating into profits and raising prices for consumers. The weak jobs data makes it more likely that Trump will get one thing that he most fervently desires: A cut in short-term interest rates by the Federal Reserve, which often — though not always — can lead to lower rates for mortgages, car loans, and credit cards.
The current situation is a sharp reversal from the hiring boom of just three years ago when desperate employers were handing out signing bonuses and introducing perks such as Fridays off, fertility benefits and even pet insurance to recruit and keep workers.
The rate of people quitting their jobs a sign they’re confident they can land something better — has fallen from the record heights of 2021 and 2022 and is now weaker than before the pandemic.
Drees Homes, a homebuilder based outside Cincinnati in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, has hired about 50 people over the past year bringing its workforce to around 950. Pamela Rader, Drees’ vice president for human resources, it’s “gotten a little bit easier” to find workers. A couple of years ago, Rader said jobseekers were focused on getting more pay Now she said, they emphasize stable employment, a better work-life balance, and prospects for advancement.
posting a text exchange between himself and The Current reporter who asked for comment from Guillory on the auditor’s findings.
In a 25-page statement The Acadiana Advocate obtained from Guillory, he says the auditor’s report “reeks of lawfare” and that the LLA is “a politically-appointed fixture masquerading as a watchdog ” He added that the agency is “little more than a hitman for the elite’s intent on dragging Lafayette Parish (and our state) backwards.”
Guillory told The Acadiana Advocate that the yet-tobe-released report contains nothing new and is serving
sary structural repairs pursuant to the Executive Order.”
When Camp J shut down in 2018, criminal justice advocates praised the state’s decision to close it. Then-
Corrections Secretary James LeBlanc said the move aligned with a plan to improve how Louisiana prisons securely keep inmates separated from each other
On Friday, criminal justice advocates said prison overcrowding was a predictable result of a set of “tough-oncrime” laws the Louisiana Legislature passed last year at Landry’s behest The new laws lengthened prison sentences and eliminated parole for adults who committed
as a distraction from Bou-
let’s proposed budget, claiming she is wasting money
Guillory served as mayorpresident from Jan. 6, 2020, until Jan 3, 2024. He was defeated in his reelection bid by Boulet, who is the daughter of Louisiana’s first elected woman governor, the late Kathleen Blanco. The Legislative Auditor’s Office did not return a request for comment. They do not usually comment on matters still under review
In February 2022, the Guillory administration launched a plan to ease flooding from the Vermilion River by reducing the height of a spoil bank created in the
crimes after Aug. 1, 2024.
Advocates also had qualms about the possible reopening of Camp J.
“Not only will men continue to swelter at Camp J, but they will also endure either overcrowding in solitary cells or be kept in isolation — a severe punishment that extensive research has shown to be tantamount to abuse, torture, and is dangerous and ineffective,” Samantha Kennedy, executive director of the Promise of Justice Initiative, said in a statement.
The Promise of Justice Initiative is a New Orleansbased group that advocates for incarcerated people.
1950s when the Corps of Engineers dredged the river and dumped the dredged material near the riverbank, creating a levee that stopped floodwaters from flowing into a swamp in St. Martin Parish.
Without permission from St. Martin Parish or the Corps, and without seeking bids, the Guillory administration used an existing contractor to work at night
to remove part of the spoil bank. LCG also purchased part ownership of land in St. Martin Parish to aid in the project.
“LCG executed a public works project outside its jurisdiction, on land it did not fully own, without obtaining the required local and federal permits and in potential violation of multiple state and federal laws,” the LLA findings concluded, accord-
ing to The Current story Both Guillory and former City-Parish Attorney Greg Logan, in his 31-page July 14 response to the auditor, dispute the conclusions. They previously disputed the findings of the independent auditors who first noted problems with the spoil bank project.
Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@theadvocate.com.
ANGOLA
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JACQUELyN MARTIN
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departing the White House on Friday.
He helped expand thepopularityof conjunto,Tejano, Tex-Mexmusic
BY JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press
HOUSTON Flaco Jimenez, the legendary accordionist from San Antonio who won multiple Grammys and helped expand the popularityofconjunto, Tejano and Tex-Mex music, died Thursday.Hewas 86.
Jimenez’sdeath was announced Thursday evening by his family on social media. He was surrounded by family members when he died in the San Antonio home of his son Arturo Jimenez.
“Dad was in peace when he left. He started saying his goodbyes several days before. He said he was proud of himself for what he had doneand he just leaves memories for the publicto enjoy.Hesaid he was ready to go,” Arturo Jimenez told The Associated Press in a
phone interview on Friday Arturo Jimenez said a cause of death has not yet been determined. Hisfather had been hospitalized in January after getting a blood clot in his leg. Doctors then discovered he had some vascular issues. Born Leonardo Jimenez in 1939, he was knownto hisfans by hisnickname of Flaco, which means skinny in Spanish. He was the sonofconjunto pioneer Santiago Jimenez Conjunto is amusical genre that originated in South Texasand blends different genres and cultural influences.
According to the Butler School of Music at the University of Texas at Austin, the development of conjunto “began more than acentury agowhenTexansofMexican heritage(Tejanos) took an interest in the accordion music of German, Polish, and Czech immigrants. The ensuing Tejanoaccordion music, accompaniedbythe bajo sexto (replacing the European tuba) soon came to represent the Tejano way of life, which
SanAntonio accordionist FlacoJimenez,86, dies
was closelyassociated with working in the agricultural fields. The musicremains unchanged andservesasa symbol that bindsmany Tejanocommunities in South and Central Texas.”
Jimenezrefined his conjuntomusical skills by playinginSan Antonio saloons anddance halls. He began performinginthe 1960s with fellowSan Antonio native Douglas Sahm, thefounding member of the Sir Doug-
las Quintet. Jimenez would later play with BobDylan, Dr.John, Ry Cooder and the RollingStones. Throughout his career, Jimenez addedother influences into conjunto music, includingfromcountry,rock and jazz.
“He always wanted to try to incorporate accordion intoall sorts of different genres and how to makethe accordionblend in. Thatwas always afascination of his
and he was able to,” Arturo Jimenez said.
In the1990s, Jimenez was part of the Tejano supergroup theTexas Tornados, whichincluded Sahm, Augie Meyers and Freddy Fender
The group won aGrammy in 1991 forthe song, “Soy de San Luis.”
Jimenezalsowon another Grammy in 1999 as part of another supergroup, Los Super Seven.
Jimenez earned five Grammys and was awarded a Grammy Lifetime AchievementAwardin2015.
He was also inducted into the National Hispanic Hall of Fame and NYCInternational Latin Music Hall of Fame and wasnamed aTexas State Musician in 2014.
Arturo Jimenez said his father wasahumble man who neverwantedtobeashowman and was focused on playing music forhis fans.
“I’ve seenwhere fans come up to him and they literally cry and they thank my dadfor allthe good music and how dad’smusic has been therefor them in multiple situations, either hap-
JeannieSeely,Grammy-winningcountry singer,dies
BY MARIA SHERMAN AP musicwriter
NEW YORK Jeannie Seely,the soulful country music singer behindsuch standards like “Don’t Touch Me,” has died. She was85. Her publicist, Don Murry Grubbs, said she died Friday after succumbing to complications from an intestinal infection
Known as “Miss Country Soul” for her unique vocal style, Seely was atrailblazer for women in country music, celebratedfor her spirited nonconformity and for astring of undeniable hits in the ’60s and ’70s.
Her secondhusband, Gene Ward, died in December.InMay, Seely revealed that she was in recovery afterundergoing multiple back surgeries, two emergency procedures and spending 11 days in the ICU. “Rehab is pretty tough, but each dayislooking brighter andlast night, Isaw alight at the endof
thetunnel. And it wasneon,soI knewitwas mine!” shesaid in a statement at the time. “The unsinkable Seely is working her way back.”
piness or sadness,” Arturo Jimenez said. When Jimenez was named a2022 NationalMedal of Arts recipient, the White House said he was being honored for “harnessing heritage to enrichAmerican music”and that by “blending Norteño, TexMex, and Tejano music with the Blues, Rock n’ Roll, and Pop Music, he sings the soul of America’sSouthwest.”
“Weappreciate thegift of your musical talent, which brought joy to countless fans. Your passing leaves a void in ourhearts,”the Texas ConjuntoMusic Hallof Fame and Museum said in a post on social media.
Kyle Young, theCEO of the Country Music Hall of Fameand Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, said Jimenez “was aparagon of Tejano conjunto music” who “drew millions of listeners into arich musical world they might not have discovered on their own.” Jimenez lived all his lifein San Antonio, acity that was “very close to his heart,” his son said.
Seelywas born in July1940, in Titusville, Pennsylvania, about two hours north of Pittsburgh and raised innearby Townville. Her love ofcountry music was instant; hermother sang,and her father playedthe banjo.Whenshe was achild, she sang on local radio programs and performed on local television. In herearly 20s, she moved to Los Angeles to kick-start acareer,taking ajob at Libertyand Imperial RecordsinHollywood. She kept writingand recording. Nashville was next: She sang on Porter Wagoner’sshow;she got adeal with Monument Records. Her greatest hit would arrive soon
afterward: “Don’tTouch Me,” the crossover ballad written by Hank Cochran. The song earned Seely her only Grammy Award, for best country &western vocal performance in the female category Cochran andSeelywere married in 1969 and divorced in 1979. Seely broke boundaries in her career —ata time when country musicexpecteda kindofsubservience from itswomen performers, Seelywas abit of arebel, known for wearing aminiskirt on theGrand Ole Opry stage when it was still taboo. And she hadanumber of country hits in the ’60sand ’70s,including three Top10hitsonwhat is now known as Billboard’shot country songs chart: “Don’tTouch Me,” 1967’s“I’ll Love YouMore (Than YouNeed)”and 1973’s“Can ISleep In Your Arms?”, adapted from thefolk song “Can ISleep In Your BarnTonight Mister?” In theyears since, Seely continued to release albums, perform,
and host, regularly appearing on country music programming. Her songs are considered classics, and have been recorded by everyone from Merle Haggard,Ray Price and Connie Smith to Ernest Tubb, Grandpa Jones andLittleJimmy Dickens. And Seely never stopped working in country music. Since2018, she’shosted the weekly “Sundays with Seely” on Willie Nelson’s Willie’sRoadhouse SiriusXM channel. That sameyear,she was inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame.
She appeared nearly 5,400 times at the Grand Ole Opry,which she has been amember of since 1967. Grubbs saidSaturday’sGrand Ole Opry show would be dedicated to Seely She released her latest song in July 2024, acover of DottieWest’s “Suffertime,” recorded at the world-renowned RCA Studio B. She performed it at theOprythe year before.
By The Associated Press
CAPE CANAVERAL,Fla. Astronauts sidelinedfor the past year by Boeing’sStarliner trouble blasted off to the International Space Station on Friday,getting alift from SpaceX. The U.S.-Japanese-Russian crew of four rocketedfromNASA’sKennedy Space Center.They’ll replace colleagueswho launchedtothe space station in March as fill-ins forNASA’s twostuck astronauts. Their SpaceX capsule should reachthe orbiting labthisweekend and stay foratleast six months.
Zena Cardman, abiologist and polar explorer who should have launched last year,was yanked along with another NASA crewmate to make room for Starliner’s star-crossed test pilots.
“I have no emotion but joy right now.Thatwas absolutely transcendent. Ride of alifetime,” Cardman, theflight commander, said after reaching orbit. Astronautslaunch to thespace station
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By MARK ZALESKI Flaco Jimenez performs during the Americana Music Honors and AwardsshowSept. 17, 2014, in Nashville, Tenn.
Gulf ‘deadzone’ over 4,000squaremiles
Some moneytohelpaddress pollutionthatcontributes to it maybecut
BY MIKE SMITH Staff writer
The Gulf “dead zone” offLouisiana’scoast was nearlythe size of Connecticut this summer,researchers reported Thursday, even as the Trump administration proposescuts to some federal funding intended to help address the pollution that contributes to it.
Despite the gargantuan size of the low-oxygenzone, covering an area across nearlythe entire Louisiana coast west of the Mississippi River, it was smaller than predicted and slightly below the long-term average. Butit’scurrently more thantwice thesizeof expectations in aplan to successfully curb it by2035. Federal officials said states have made progress on reducing certain types of nutrient pollution flowing
down the Mississippi,which leads to what has become known as the “dead zone”eachsummer. But they acknowledged that President Donald Trump’sproposed budget for fiscal year 2026 defunds two types of federal grants that assist states in addressing and monitoring pollution. Researchers are watching closely to seeifother cuts could be on the way as theTrump administra-
tion pursues what it describesas policiestomakegovernment more efficient. The president’sbudget proposalisnot the finalword, since Congress can move to add or subtract moneythroughout the budget process.
Amounts for the twocategories of Environmental Protection Agency grants defunded in Trump’sbudget proposal —known as sections 106 and 319— have
BRANCH WARMER
Adragonfly alightson afallen branch last month at Cypress Lakeswamp on theUniversity of Louisiana at Lafayette campus.
The Attorney General’sLouisiana Bureau of Investigations arrested aVillePlatte police officer and accused him of framing afellow officer during ashooting investigation.
Issac Johnson faces charges of malfeasance in office, filing false public records andobstruction of justice, according to aLouisiana Attorney General’sOffice statement.
Johnson’sarrest stemmed from aJune complaint of misconduct involving bullet casings going missing from theVille Platte Police Department
Johnson allegedly provideda false writtenstatement to the Ville Platte City Marshal’sOffice after they began an investi-
gation into the missing evidence, leading to the arrest of the fellow officer
Theofficer would resign and is now consideredinnocent.
“I have confidence in our police, as they put their lives on the line for us every day. It’sunfortunate when someone breaches the public’strust in this manner, and we will holdthem accountable,” said Attorney General Liz Murrill.
Johnson is beingheld at the Evangeline ParishSheriff’s Office on a$25,000 bond.
An investigation is ongoing.
Opelousasman killed in overnight hit-and-run
An Opelousas man diedearly Wednesday in ahit-and-run crash on Interstate10.
McKinley Lazard,52, was found by Sulphur Police on the
side of thehighway,according to anews release.
An investigation determined that Lazard was walking along I-10 overnight andwas hit by a vehicle and died of his injuries.
Police areasking anyone with anyinformationabout this case to call Capt. Cheaney of theSulphur Police Departmentat(337) 527-4550.
Mancharged with video voyeurism
ALafayette Parish man is facing nearly adozen charges following amonthslonginvestigation by the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office. Andre Guidry,33, was arrested Thursday morning as aresult of an investigation into complaints that he trespassed on multiple properties in the100 blockof StoneridgeDrive, accordingto
varied over the years. TheEPA has granted about $18.5 million yearly in 106 grants, though Congress hasalsoaddedadditionalmoney
The 319 grants amounted to $178 million in fiscal year 2022, the last year available on the EPAwebsite. Brian Frazer,director of the EPA’sofficeofwetlands, oceans andwatersheds, notedhowever that other funds to address hypoxia —the scientific term for lowoxygenareas —werestill being
Man found guilty of 2024 murder
Conviction carries mandatorylife sentence
BY STEPHENMARCANTEL Staff writer
AVermilion Parish jury found an Abbeville manguilty of aJuly 2024 murder in whichheshot aman and disposed of the body in acoulee.
Carlton Eugene Hills, 57, was found guiltyofthe second-degree murder of Dalvin Mullins and obstruction of justice, according to aVermilion Parish district attorney announcement. Hills faces amandatory life sentence forthe murder andupto40years for obstruction of justice.
On July 8, 2024, in Abbeville, the jury found Hills shot Mullions four times with a9mmhandgun in front of several witnesses before running over his body with avehicle.
Hills then rolled Mullin’sbody in ablanket, placed him in the vehicle, and proceeded to drive away from the scene. Hills later disposed of the body in acoulee south of Abbeville. Police recovered the body from the Youngs South Coulee underneath the South Guegnon Road bridge. Police later retrieved the murder weapon at Hill’shome in Abbeville.
Hills had been arrested in 1983 and convictedofarmedrobbery andaggravated batterywitha dangerous weapon, and wassentenced to twenty-five years in prison. His parole for those charges ended in 2008, according to the announcement.
Sentencing is tentatively set for Oct. 30.
theSheriff’s Office. He wasalso accused of attempting to record videoofoccupants insidethe residences. Throughout the investigation, several victim andeyewitness statements were collected, and detectives conducted asearch warrant at thesuspect’sresidence. With this evidence, an arrest warrantfor Guidry was granted for six felony countsof video voyeurism andfive counts of criminal trespass. Guidry was arrested and booked intothe Lafayette Parish Correctional Center Police: Womandies in single-vehicle crash
An Abbeville woman suffered fatal injuriesonTuesday in a single-vehicle crashonLa. 724,
BYKRISTINASKELSON Staff writer
The investigation into acrash on Interstate 10 in Jennings hasled to the arrest of awomansuspected of merchandise thefts in several states, Jennings police said. Jennings policerespondedtoa crash Tuesday on I-10 involving a vehicle towing atrailer. The vehicle pulling the trailer had overturned, with its occupants temporarily trapped inside. The occupantswere removedfromthe vehiclewithonly minor injuries reported.
Witnesses said the crash was causedbya secondvehicle driven by 56-year-old Teresa Webster,of Boynton Beach, Florida, who was
STAFF
PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK
Southern University unveilsstudent radiostation
‘The Bluff’ will offeramix of programming
BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer
Southern University
Chancellor John Pierre
beamed as he signed the Federal Communications Commission document marking the transition from WTQT to WSUB, the new call sign of the university’s very own radio station.
Abanner emblazoned with the new station logo, aSouthern jaguar wearing headphones, hung in the crowded officespace on Government Street, along
with posters for old NAACP marches and gospelmusic flyers. Observerscheered when thetransfer was final in the eyes of the FCC, at 12:34 p.m. Friday
“This is the kind of opportunity that can transform the lives of our students,” Pierre said. “This is all part of the transformation of Southern University to become the institution that is looking outward tothe community.”
It was ablazing August day and celebratory moment for Southern and Baton Rouge communityleaderswho gathered to formally unveil the new station, which will offerprogramming24hours aday,seven days aweek and be oper-
ated by students from the largest historically Black college in Louisiana.
Studentsinthe Department of Mass Communication will workatthe station, called WSUB 106.1 LPFM “The Bluff.” It will replace the gospelstation WTQT and offer ablend of genres, including hip-hop,R&B and pop as well as gospel.
Nicolette Gordon, operations manager for the new station, saidstudentswill have the opportunity to develop their communication skills andlearn howtouse the radio equipment. The station will provide handson training for students interested in podcasting, audio production, radio and media careers, according to
auniversity release.
“Wewant to prepare our students to compete in any market as it pertains to communications and finding and gainfully keeping employment,” Gordon said.
Students also will gain knowledge of theins and outs of FCC regulations and media management,said Ernest Johnson, president of the Louisiana Community DevelopmentCapitalFund, which owns the license for thestation andenteredinto acooperative endeavor agreement with Southern.
“I thinkthat thestudents should become aware of the ownership of thebroadcast stations, howtheyoperate, howthe board of directors operates, howoffices oper-
Newoperatorto take over TheDungeon in N.O.
French Quarter dive bartostay in thefamily
BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer
The Dungeon, alate-night French Quarter dive bar known for its Goth, heavymetal vibe, is getting anew operator after its longtime owner,Art Wilcox, has decided to retire
Denizens of the dark and spooky Toulouse Street haunt, which has been a fixture of the neighborhood since the late 1960s, need not worry about anew proprietor spiffing up the place or turningitinto adaiquiri shop.
Wilcox is passing the reins to his son, Damien Wilcox, who will continue to operate the Dungeon as-is for the foreseeable future, according to an attorney for the bar’slandlord.
“The lease is for years, not months, and he has options to renew,” said attorney Stephen Bruno, who represents the Caracci family,which has owned the Dungeon building for decades
The development puts to rest, for now at least,concern over the bar’sfuture.
Earlier this month, word beganspreading in French Quarter night life circles that Art Wilcox was retiring
GULF
Continued from page1B
distributed.
“It does call for no 319 or 106 funds,” Frazersaid during anews conference to announce the dead zone findings. “That can always change. But as Imentioned earlier,states soon will have been awarded final Gulf hypoxiaprogram grants totaling $4.3 million.”
The area of low oxygen can cause fish, shrimp and other marine life to flee or die. It can also affect fish diets,reproduction and growth.
Beyond theimplications on marine life in general, the dead zone also affects Louisiana fisheries, particularly the shrimping industry
‘Mostproductive fisheries’
The nutrient pollution leads to algae growth. When the algae dies and decomposes, it uses up the water’s oxygen.
Measuring the dead zone was pioneered by scientists based at the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium and LSU, and those institutions still play alead role in the research.
Cassandra Glaspie, of both LSU and the consortium, which researches coastal and marine systems, on Thursday reported the findings fromthose organizations’annual cruise survey from July 20-25 to measure the dead zone. This year,itmeasured 4,402 square miles, or about 90% the size of Connecticut and about seven times the size of Lake Pontchartrain. It remains far abovethe 2035 goal of around1,900 square miles.
Glaspie noted that the dead zone “makes the seafloor in that region uninhabitable for fish and shellfish. And then
over operations from his father
Damien Wilcox could not be reached for comment ‘Rock‘n’ roll scene’
records show, and Wilcox took over in the 2000s.He registeredthe Dungeon’s name with the Louisiana Secretary of Statein2004. Colorful history
ate,”Johnson said.“Ithink theyshould getafull teaching andunderstanding and appreciation of one of the most major industriesthat we have, which is media.”
Themediumand message
For Johnson, also former president of theNAACP in Louisiana, there is a connection between mass communication and justice work.
He recalledgrowing up in Ferriday,where he and his siblings —14all together —readout loud to hisilliterate grandmother.The experience, he said, taught him about the power and necessity of words.
“I just think it could be a better world if we can get
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everybody to understand each other,” Johnson said. “That’swhatI’m looking forward to.”
The sentiment lingers around the radio station, once theoffice wherestate NAACP members organized. “One of the things I learned in the early stage of theNAACPwas you’ve got to be able to communicate,” Johnson said. “You’ve got to be able to crystallize your message and get your messageout, so peopleunderstand. Because misunderstanding is the worst thing in the world, right?”
Email Haley Miller at haley.miller@ theadvocate.com.
when theDungeon’s lease expiresinNovember, and that the bar would close. Wilcox,reachedbyphone on Monday,confirmed he is retiring, saying, “I love the joint and it hasbeen there forever and so many people have beenaffectedbyit, but it is time to retire.”
He declined to comment further Bruno,meanwhile, said the Caraccis were looking for anew operator to take over,insisting therewere no plans to close thebar or sell thetwo-story building. “Weare not goingtolet this thingclose down,” he said Monday.“We have lots of peoplewho want to take it over in its current form.”
Late Tuesday,in afollowup email, Bruno said the Caraccis hadfinalized anew long-term leasefor thesite with ArtWilcox, andthat DamienWilcoxwill take
this, of course, impactsone of our nation’smost productive fisheries.”
Besides the dead zone west of the river,new research is beginning to understand a similar phenomenon east of the river,causing major concerns for the Mississippi GulfCoast. Findings on the size of this year’sdead zone in that area are expected to be reported next week
Much of the nutrients flowing down the Mississippi comefromfertilizerand animal waste from farms in the country’sMidwest, though there are other sources as well, including sewage and storm runoff. Atask force includingthe federalgovernment andstates along the Mississippi hasbeenseeking to addressthe issue, and some farms haveadopted measures to trytolimit nutrient runoff into the river Those includeconservation practices such as twostage ditches that canfunctionaswetlands that absorb nutrients and encouraging the use ofcover crops.
‘Prettyshockingtous’ Gretchen Oelsner,ofthe U.S.Geological Survey,said preliminary data fromMay showed nitrogen in the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers was24% below the long-term average, though phosphorus was around 31% above. But R. Eugene Turner,another LSU scientist who has closely studiedthe deadzone, saidthose figures were a“misdirection ” He said nitrogen in the Mississippi has declined by 4% at most since ahypoxia action plan wasadopted in 2001.The number cited by USGS is anchored in abaseline set in the 1980s, he said. Turner also argued the size of the dead zone being somewhat less than predicted forthisyearlikelyhad
In acity known for dark characters and haunted spaces, theDungeon is in a class of its own, with adedicated local followingand a national reputation proliferated by out-of-town visitorswho ventured down its narrow alley for alate-night experience.
It wasopenedin1969 by Howard Clark, accordingto its website, and bills itself as “therock ‘n’ rollscene of New Orleans.”
“Everyone from Kiss, Queen, ZZ Top, 38 Special, andBad Company would come heretohangout,” the sitestates
While those claimsto heavymetal greatness couldn’tbeindependently verified, Mötley Crüe rocker Nikki Sixx recalledin his memoir,“The Dirt” that theDungeon was the scene of abloody brawl that he, a bandmateand thelateshock rocker Ozzy Osbourne got into in 1984 while in town for aconcert.
“Ozzy’s disciplinarian wife, Sharon, was not amused,” Sixx wrote, according to a2018 review of the bookbyKeithSpera in The Times-Picayune.
Allan Kagan was asubsequent owner of the bar,court
more to do with theGulf being particularly warm and saidthe modeling used for the predictions may not have sufficiently accounted for it. The measured size did, however, fallwithin the range of uncertaintyfor such estimates
Warmer waterscan limit thesizeofcertain types of plankton, whichcontribute to the dead zone.
Glaspie highlighted the especially warm waters in her presentation, saying that surface temperatureswere “extremelyhigh” at up to 97 degrees— around thetemperature of the human body
“Sowebasically had human body temperaturewater at some of those locationsout in the Gulf,” she said. “That was pretty shocking to us.”
Studieshave identified a combination of cyclical factors andclimatechange for the rapidly warming Gulf.
Nancy Rabalais, the LSU professor who began carrying out dead zone measuring cruises in 1985, noted the five-year dead zoneaverage remained 4,440 square miles, which is morethan twice the 2035 target.
Describing this year’s size, Rabalais calledit“average, but still large.”
Environmental group Healthy Gulf also noted the warm waters andsaidthe 2035 goal seemedvirtually impossible to attain.
“Itwould take $2.7 billion annually to meet the task
The building that houses thebar was home to apopular nightclub in the1940s and1950s —TonyBacino’s Bar, which was known at the time as awelcoming hangout for gaypatrons, accordingtolocal media reports. The barclosedin 1958 andthe building was later sold.
In 1964, Rosemary Graffagnini Caracci, wife of the late Frank Caracci, bought the building from Hibernia Homestead and Savings Association, according to courtrecords. She transferredthe property in 2001 to thefamily trust that still owns it today Frank Caracci was awellknown French Quarter barowner in the mid-20th centuryand associateof mobbossCarlos Marcello, though he personally was not an owner of the 738 ToulouseSt. property.
Atwice-convicted felon, Frank Caracci alwaysdenied any mafia connections. He died at age 72 in 1996. RosemaryCaracci died in 2021.
Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@ theadvocate.com.
force goal,utilizing current conservation practices,”
Matt Rota, the group’ssenior policy director,said in a statement.
“Weneed to understand that unless we fundamentally change how we address thispollution, from farming practices to federaland state policies, thereisnoway we will meet the 2035 goal. If we don’treach this goal, our fisherfolk, coastalcommunities and Gulfecosystem will continue to suffer.
Email Mike Smith at msmith@theadvocate.com.
reportedly driving erratically before thecollision, officialssaid. Webster was detainedatthe scene, and atoxicology screening was conducted. Results are pending.
AsearchofWebster’svehicle found drug paraphernalia and items suspected to be stolen property,police said. Investigators allegedly linked Webster to atheft of toolsfroma Home Depotin
Slidell andthe theftofa Louis Vuitton handbag valued at $1,350 from aDillard’s department store in Alabama. Surveillance footage obtained from multiple retailersconfirmedWebster’s involvement in aseriesof retail thefts alongthe I-10 corridor,stretchingfrom Florida to Texas, authorities said. Shehas an extensive criminal history across four states, including charges related to narcotics possession and trafficking, retail theft, fraud and possession of stolenproperty Webster was chargedwith reckless driving, suspected DUI, possessionofdrug paraphernalia,possessionof stolenproperty andmultiple countsofretailtheft. She was booked into the Jefferson Davis Parish Jail on a$12,500 bond. The investigationisongoing, police said.
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police say The crash claimed the lifeof36-year-old Schuyler Lewis, of Abbeville.
On Tuesday just before 11 p.m.,trooperswith Louisiana State Police began investigating asinglevehicle fatality crash on La. 724 (South Fieldspan Road) near its intersection with Paul Molbert Road.
The preliminary investigation revealed Lewis was driving a2023 Kia Sportage south on La. 724. For reasons still under investigation, the Kia traveled off theroadwaytothe right while in acurve before striking an embankment, a tree and autility pole.
Lewis, who was unrestrained, suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased at thescene, according to police.
This crashremains under investigation.
Broussard mankilled in crash on I-49
ABroussard mandriving acommercial vehicle was killed Wednesday on Interstate 49 near Ville Platte Around 11 a.m.Wednes-
day,officers with Louisiana State Police Troop Ibegan investigating a two-vehicle crashinvolving commercial vehicles on I-49 just south of its intersection with Louisiana Highway 29, according to anewsrelease. Marcus Landry, 40, of Broussard, was killed in the crash. The preliminary investigation revealed that a2019 FreightlinerCascadia was traveling north on I-49 at a reduced speed.Atthe same time, a2015Freightliner M2-160 driven by Landry was traveling north on I-49 behindthe Cascadia.For reasonsstill underinvestigation,the vehicle Landry was driving failedtoyield andstruckthe rear of the Cascadia Landry,who wasproperly restrained, suffered fatal injuries andwas pronounced deceased at the scene. The driverofthe Cascadia wasproperlyrestrainedand uninjured. The driver of the Cascadia wasnot suspectedof being impaired and provideda voluntary breath sample, which showed no alcohol was detected. Routine toxicology sampleswerecollected from Landry for analysis. This crash remains under investigation.
BUSINESS
Wall Street tumbles on jobs report
The U.S. stock market had its worst day since May on Friday after the government reported a sharp slowdown in hiring and President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on imports from a number of U.S. trading partners.
The S&P 500 fell 1.6%, its biggest decline since May 21 and its fourth straight loss. The index also posted a 2.4% loss for the week, marking a sharp shift from last week’s record-setting streak of gains.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.2%, while the Nasdaq composite fell 2.2%.
“What had looked like a Teflon labor market showed some scratches this morning, as tariffs continue to work their way through the economy,” said Ellen Zentner, chief economic strategist for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.
“A Fed that still appeared hesitant to lower rates may see a clearer path to a September cut, especially if data over the next month confirms the trend.” Federal Reserve governor steps down
WASHINGTON The Federal Reserve announced Friday that governor Adriana Kugler will step down next week, opening up a spot on the central bank’s powerful board that President Donald Trump will be able to fill.
Kugler, who did not participate in the Fed’s policy meeting earlier this week, would have completed her term in January Instead, she will retire Aug. 8. She did not provide a reason for stepping down in her resignation letter Kugler was appointed to the Fed’s seven-member board of governors by former President Joe Biden in September 2023. She was the first Hispanic Fed governor, and before joining the Fed, was a professor at Georgetown University and was the U.S. representative to the World Bank. She will return to the Georgetown faculty in the fall.
In her last speech as a Fed governor two weeks ago, Kugler expressed support for Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s view that the central bank should keep rates unchanged while officials monitor the economy to see how Trump’s tariffs affect inflation and the economy If Powell doesn’t “substantially” lower rates, Trump posted, “THE BOARD SHOULD ASSUME CONTROL, AND DO WHAT EVERYONE KNOWS HAS TO BE DONE!” Apple has strong quarter, despite tariffs SAN FRANCISCO Apple shook off a thicket of tariffs and a botched entry into artificial intelligence to accelerate its revenue growth during its springtime quarter, but the trendsetting tech company still faces a bumpy road ahead that could lead to higher iPhone prices. The Cupertino, California, company earned $23.4 billion, or $1.57 per share, during its fiscal third quarter, a 9% increase from the same time last year Revenue climbed 10% from a year ago to $94 billion. The company’s iPhone sales surged 13% from a year ago to $44.6 billion. In another positive development, Apple’s business in China showed signs of snapping out of a prolonged malaise with a 4% bump in revenue from the same time last year. Before Thursday’s report came out, Apple’s stock price had plunged by 17% so far this year to wipe out more than $600 billion in shareholder wealth and knock the company off its perch as the world’s most valuable company Meanwhile, the shares of AI chipmaker Nvidia have surged 32% this year and the shares of AI pacesetter Microsoft have gained 27%, propelling the market value to $4 trillion
Tesla must pay $240M in deadly
Jury says car company partly responsible for accident
BY BERNARD CONDON and DAVID FISCHER Associated Press
MIAMI A Miami jury decided that Elon Musk’s car company Tesla was partly responsible for a deadly crash in Florida involving its Autopilot driver assist technology and must pay the victims more than $240 million in damages.
The federal jury held that Tesla bore significant responsibility because its technology failed and that not all the blame can be put on a reckless driver, even one who admitted he was distracted by his cellphone before hitting a young couple out gazing at the stars. The decision comes as Musk seeks to convince Americans his cars are safe enough to drive on their own as he plans to roll out a driverless
taxi service in several cities in the coming months.
The decision ends a four-yearlong case remarkable not just in its outcome but that it even made it to trial. Many similar cases against Tesla have been dismissed and, when that didn’t happen, settled by the company to avoid the spotlight of a trial.
“This will open the floodgates,” said Miguel Custodio, a car crash lawyer not involved in the Tesla case. “It will embolden a lot of people to come to court.”
The case also included startling charges by lawyers for the family of the deceased, 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon, and for her injured boyfriend, Dillon Angulo They claimed Tesla either hid or lost key evidence, including data and video recorded seconds before the accident.
Tesla has previously faced criticism that it is slow to cough up crucial data by relatives of other victims in Tesla crashes, accusations that the car company has denied. In this case, the plaintiffs showed Tesla had the evidence all
along, despite its repeated denials, by hiring a forensic data expert who dug it up. Tesla said it made a mistake after being shown the evidence and honestly hadn’t thought it was there.
“Today’s verdict is wrong,” Tesla said in a statement, “and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardize Tesla’s and the entire industry’s efforts to develop and implement lifesaving technology.” They said the plaintiffs concocted a story ”blaming the car when the driver from day one — admitted and accepted responsibility.” In addition to a punitive award of $200 million, the jury said Tesla must also pay $43 million in compensatory damages, bringing the total borne by the company to $243 million. Tesla said it will appeal.
It’s not clear how much of a hit to Tesla’s reputation for safety the verdict in the Miami case will make Tesla has vastly improved its technology since the crash on a dark, rural road in Key Largo, Florida, in 2019. The plaintiffs’ lead lawyer,
crash
Brett Schreiber, said Tesla’s decision to even use the term Autopilot showed it was willing to mislead people and take big risks with their lives because the system only helps drivers with lane changes, slowing a car and other tasks, falling far short of driving the car itself.
Schreiber acknowledged that the driver, George McGee, was negligent when he blew through flashing lights, a stop sign and a T-intersection at 62 miles an hour before slamming into a Chevrolet Tahoe that the couple had parked to get a look at the stars.
The Tahoe spun around so hard it was able to launch Benavides 75 feet through the air into nearby woods where her body was later found. It also left Angulo with broken bones and a traumatic brain injury
But Schreiber said Tesla was at fault nonetheless. He said Tesla allowed drivers to act recklessly by not disengaging the Autopilot as soon as they begin to show signs of distraction and by allowing them to use the system on smaller roads.
Expanding cattle has challenges
Ranchers want to benefit from high beef prices, but it’s not so simple
BY STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS In a period when retail beef prices are at an all-time high and consumers are still willing to pay, South Dakota rancher Calli Williams would love to cash in. But it’s not so simple.
Williams and her husband, Tate, raise about 70 cow-calf pairs near Letcher in southeastern South Dakota, roughly 18 miles north of Mitchell. They own about 80 acres and rent additional pasture.
Between the drought that hit cattle country hard over the last few years, still being maxed out on the grass available to feed their animals and with land prices rising she said, they simply can’t yet make the financial investments that they’d need to raise production.
“It is a goal of ours to expand,” she said.
“I’m just not sure if that will be in the 10year plan or even longer.”
Farmers and ranchers across the U.S. would love to take greater advantage of the high prices, but with the U.S. herd at record lows, they can’t meet the demand quickly It’s basic biology.
“It takes three years to get more cows — between making a decision, having that gestation period, having the calf born, raising the calf until it, too, can have a calf,” said Michael Swanson, chief agricultural economist for the Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute in Minneapolis.
Impacts persist
The Williamses’ county was hard hit by drought over the previous few seasons. Because of the lack of their grass and uneconomically high hay prices, they had to sell all their young females last year that could have produced more calves for them this year, she said.
Their area has caught some rain lately, though. It has improved to just “abnormally dry” in recent U.S. Drought Monitor reports But Williams said they’re simply playing catch-up Swanson said some of the main cattle areas in North America — from Saskatchewan
Farmers and ranchers across the U.S. would love to take greater advantage of the high beef prices, but with the U.S. herd at record lows, they can’t meet the demand.
and Manitoba in Canada down to Texas in the U.S. are just naturally prone to drought.
It’s often boom or bust.
Colin Woodall, CEO of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, said a lot of cattle country has had good rain this summer, but it’s a cyclical business.
“Sometimes we have good times, and sometimes we don’t,” Woodall said. “And we are just coming off what was a pretty significant negative hit to the cattle industry in ’19, ’20 and ’21, with the height of the pandemic. So we have a lot of producers who are still trying to pay off bills from those times.”
Fear of future drought is also a factor
And Woodall said his members are still leery They’re asking how long the better weather will last.
“We’re getting some good moisture now But will it be that way in the fall? Will it be that way next year?” he said. “Because the last thing you want to do is pay to rebuild your herd and then just have to liquidate them again in six months to a year.”
Although it’s difficult to attribute any single weather event, such as a drought, directly to climate change, scientists say that ris-
ing temperatures stoked by climate change are increasing the odds of both severe droughts and heavier precipitation, which wreak havoc on people and the environment.
When extreme weather collides with tight margins, farmers and ranchers feel the squeeze.
Herds have shrunk
The total U.S. cattle herd is the smallest it has been at midyear since the government began keeping those figures in 1973, and probably since the 1950s. There were few signs in the U.S. Department of Agriculture data released last Friday that producers have begun rebuilding herds.
As of July 1, the U.S had 94.2 million cattle and calves, down from the last midyear peak in 2019 of nearly 103 million. Critical for the future supply 2025 calf production is projected at 33.1 million head, down 1% from last year
Derrell Peel, a livestock marketing specialist at Oklahoma State University, said if producers were planning to grow their herds, the USDA reports would have shown them keeping heifers — female cows that haven’t given birth yet.
Google loses appeal in antitrust battle with Fortnite maker
BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP technology writer
SAN FRANCISCO A federal appeals court has upheld a jury verdict condemning Google’s Android app store as an illegal monopoly, clearing the way for a federal judge to enforce a potentially disruptive shakeup that’s designed to give consumers more choices. The unanimous ruling issued Thursday by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals delivers a double-barreled legal blow for Google, which has been waylaid in three separate antitrust trials that resulted in different pillars of its internet empire being declared monopolies since late 2023. The unsuccessful appeal represents a major victory for video game
maker Epic Games, which launched a legal crusade targeting Google’s Play Store for Android apps and Apple’s iPhone app store nearly five years ago in an attempt to bypass exclusive payment processing systems that charged 15% to 30% commissions on in-app transactions. The jury’s December 2023 rebuke of Google’s app store for Androidpowered smartphones began a cascade of setbacks that includes monopoly judgments against the company’s ubiquitous search engine last year and the technology underlying its digital ad network earlier this year
Although not as lucrative as Google’s search engine or ad system, the Play Store for Android apps has long been a gold mine that generated
billions of dollars in annual revenue by taking a 15% to 30% cut from inapp transactions funneled through the company’s own payment processing system.
Following a monthlong trial, a nine-person jury determined that Google had rigged its system to thwart alternative app stores from offering better deals to consumers and software developers. That verdict resulted in U.S. District Judge James Donato ordering Google to tear down digital walls shielding the Play Store from competition, triggering the company’s appeal to overturn the jury’s finding and void the judge’s mandated shakeup. But a three-judge panel that heard Google’s appeal in February rejected its lawyers’ contention that
Donato erred by allowing the case to be determined by a jury that deviated from the market definition outlined by another federal judge who mostly sided with Apple in Epic’s case against the iPhone maker’s app store.
Epic’s lawsuit “was replete with evidence that Google’s anticompetitive conduct entrenched its dominance, causing the Play Store to benefit from network effects,” the judges wrote in the decision. The ruling “will significantly harm user safety, limit choice, and undermine the innovation that has always been central to the Android ecosystem,” Google’s vice president of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland said in a statement.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By NAM y. HUH
OPINION
ANOTHERVIEW
JD Vance’s complicatedpath to thepresidency
Last week, we handicappedpossible Democratic candidates for president.Now,the Republicans. There won’tbeanincumbent president in the 2028 race, but there willlikelybeasitting vice president in the running. That’s whyany assessment of Republican presidential prospects begins and ends with JD Vance.
And of course, his prospects begin and end with Donald Trump. The current president gothim elected U.S. senator and then, twoyearslater,picked him to be his running mate, elevating Vance to MAGA’s crown prince —and the nomination front-runner Vance can learnalot of lessons from othervice presidents who have sought the presidency. Theytend to be stronger nominationcandidates than general electioncontenders. While vice presidents have many advantages,they’re usually weighted down by the negativesofthe incumbent president in addition to their own negatives, making for aheavy load to carry. It is atricky positiontobein.
When presidents are popular —aswere Dwight Eisenhower in 1960,RonaldReagan in 1988 and Bill Clinton in 2000 —theirvicepresidents still have to carry on their backs the administration’s record, butthe lift is lighter.Ike’sVP, Richard Nixon,lost by only arazor-thin margin, as did Clinton’sVP, Al Gore. Reagan’sVP, George H.W.Bush, won his race to become the first incumbent vice president to be elected president since Martin VanBuren. Whenpresidents areunpopular,aswere Lyndon Johnson in 1968 and Joe Biden in 2024,itcreates a complex hazard for vice presidents to maneuver. While they want to show loyalty to the president, they also havetoaccommodate the public’sdesire for change. Squaringloyalty with change is the toughest move in the business. Just askHubert Humphrey and Kamala Harris, vicepresidentswho were handed presidential nominations by insiders (neither entered state primaries)and then lost general elections. If Trump is popular in 2028,Vance will proudly run on Trump’srecord.But if Trump is unpopular, Vance will have amuch toughertask—bringing to mind the curious story of Thomas Topham, the Englishmanwho hadtolift an 800-pound tablewith his teeth.
What do voters think of Vance? There arethree polling numbers to watch: his rating among all voters, his rating amongRepublicansand his rating among independents. The first tells us wherehe standswiththe nationalelectorate; the second measures hisability to win his party’snomination; the third provides clues as to strengths andweaknesses among potential swingvoters.
Vance’srating, according to the average offour recent polls, is 42% favorable and 51% unfavorable. That’s nine points net negative
Digging deeper,wefind that Republicans love Vance; they rate him 80% favorableto11% unfavorable, according to the Economist/YouGov poll. Not surprisingly,Democrats despise him; he rates 4% favorable, 89% unfavorable among them. Independents, who often determine winnersinclose elections, are less positive than negative,28% favorable to 53% unfavorable.
An Emerson College poll conducted in late June found Vanceleading theGOP nomination racewith 46%ofthe vote. He was followedbySecretaryof State Marco Rubio at 12%, Florida Gov.Ron DeSantis at 9% and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.at5%. Eight other prospects polled 2% or less For the general election, Emerson’slateJuly survey shows close contests with Vanceasthe Republicanstandard-bearer.Heleads Democrat Pete Buttigieg, the former transportationsecretary,byasingle point, 44% to 43%. Vancetopstwo otherDemocratsbythree points: He leadsGavin Newsom, California’sgovernor, 45% to 42%, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, aNew York memberof Congress,44% to 41%. An OvertonInsights poll from late June has Harris— who,interestingly,now trails Buttigieg for the Democratic nominationin the Emerson poll —leading Vance45% to42% While Vance is in the hunt, the race startsclose National and world events —inflation, tariffs, immigration, deficits,Ukraine, Gaza, China,Iran, Epstein —could change these numbersinaflash. Regardless of the Republican name on the 2028 ballot, it will be Donald Trump’srecordthatwill be topofvoters’ minds. On that, we can all agree
Ron Faucheux is anonpartisan political analyst, pollster and writerbased in Louisiana
Thanks forsupporting Trump’stax cuts
At atime when manyAmericans are struggling to stay afloat,Sen. Bill Cassidy,Speaker Mike Johnson and theentire Louisianacongressional delegation stepped up to do theright thing:They delivered tax relief when it mattered most. By supportingPresident Donald Trump’stax agenda and voting to extend the 2017 tax cuts, they prevented what would have been one of the largest tax hikes in American history
Lettingthose cutsexpire would have hurt working families already burdened by record inflation, rising interest rates and the consequences of reckless federal spending. Without action, over 90% of Americans would have faced higher taxes. Six million jobsand morethan atrillion dollars in GDP were at stake. This wasn’tjust about numbers —that’s real people, real paychecks and real pain. Thankfully,Louisiana’sleaders in Washington didn’tlet that happen.
By passing this bill, they have reignited the samerocket fuel that launched our economy under Trump. The 2017 tax cuts gave businesses
theconfidence to hire, grow and invest. The results spoke forthemselves: Fivemillion jobs created, record-low unemployment forevery demographic and historic lowsin poverty. Wages rose. Small businesses expanded. Contrary to pessimistic predictions, revenues rose. The faster economic growthdriven by the TCJA brought in $1.6 trillion morethan projected, with$3trillion expected over ten years. Growth works. Raising taxes doesn’t. Someargue we can’t afford tax cuts because of the national debt. Butthe real issue isn’talack of revenue —it’srunaway spending in Washington. This bill is just the beginning. With Trumpand Republican leaders pushing for fiscal reform, we now have a pathforward. Johnson, Cassidy and their colleagues deserve thanks for protecting Louisiana families and reigniting hope for astronger,more prosperous America.
TRACY WELLS president, Louisiana Propane Gas Association
Texas flooding highlights fossil fuel follies
On July 3, an assembly of very intelligent people, with many having advanced degrees, voted to pass a900-page bill. Oneofthe major features of thebill was to promote by every possible means the use of fossil fuels.
Approximately 36 hours later,in central Texas, an “extremeweather event” occurred —adownpour in theGuadalupe River basin. This resulted in aflash flood and the loss of dozens of lives. Adultsand preteen girls drowned in thedark, with some swept away,probably never to be found.
Why did this extreme weather event occur? Most likely due to climate change —awarming of the atmosphere which allows for more moisture to be retained. Why did the warming occur? Due to thegases released by theburning, production and transportation of fossil fuels?
If predecessors of thesame assembly had 10, 20 or 50 years ago passed legislation deemphasizing fossil fuels and promoting renewable energy
sources, would that extreme weather event still have occurred? No one knows how exact thecorrelation is between legislation andanextreme weather event.
Butitseems likely that with less gases produced by fossil fuels, the atmosphere would have been cooler and would hold less moisture. Perhaps that extreme weather event would not have occurred,and dozens of adults and children would be alive today
Extreme weather events are occurring moreand morefrequently
Intelligent and educated members of the same assembly as mentioned above would surely take whatever steps they could with legislation to reduce theuse of fossil fuels and promotethe use of renewables. They would surely do the right thing when their opportunity came up. They would never be so foolish as to continue promoting fossil fuels versus renewables.
BYRON ALMQUIST Metairie
Let’snot pretend collegerecruits aren’t in it forthe NILmoney
The piece about Lamar Brownfrom University High who was signedby LSUfor next year’s(2026) recruiting class was heartwarming. Iwas so glad he chose LSUbecause he “loves playing formystate andmycity,”and he has“supreme comfort withLSU. Are youkidding? The dayprior, thenewspaper ran astory aboutan upcoming high school senior(like Lamar)who signedwithTexas Tech for a$5.1 million NIL package. Do youreally thinkthatLSU wasn’t anything other than thehighest bidder forhis services? The story hadnot one mentionofany NIL agreement, which Ibelieve wasthe determining factor in his decision. AndIdon’tblame him. In fact, I’mhappy forhim. Ihaveyet to see areport in print or hear one on theradioorsee oneonTV where areporter at the news conference asksthe recruit andthe school, “Whatkind of NIL deal did youget?” Why is that?
Mandonna Kashanian, a47-year Louisiana resident, was taken away from her husband and 32-year-old daughter by ICE agents on June 19. She has since been released, but she had no criminal history,volunteered at Habitat for Humanity to help rebuild people’shouses after Hurricane Katrina, wasamember of the PTA when herdaughter wasinschool and teaches people how to cook.
When we voted for Donald Trump, his three biggest selling points were: lowering supermarket prices on his first day in office, getting rid of foreign criminals/thugs who are not U.S. citizens and lowering taxes for the middle class Trump did not say he would cut Medicaid, virtually eliminate the promotion of vaccines and take good people who are paying taxes away from their families. We have the entire country living in fear STEVE PASTER NewOrleans
Metairie
CAMP PREAMBLE
Cajuns discussnew-lookteamahead of preseasonpractices
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
The UL football team’sgoal is toreturn to the Sun Belt championshipgame forthe second straightseason …and win it this time
But as the Ragin’ Cajuns went through media day at Russo Park onFriday, the day beforeopening Augustcamp, it was apparent this group will have to take adifferent path. From the unseasoned quarterback room to new leaders on defensetolosingthe nation’stop kicker,coach Michael Desormeaux’s2025 club has anew look.
Strength and conditioning coach Connor Neighbors suggested right away that this year’sgroup is already shining where it matters most.
“This is by far the most humbled,most disciplined and most ferociousteamI’ve ever been around,” said Neighbors, who is in his 15th season as acoach. “Everyday
BY WILSON ALEXANDER Staff writer
After LSU’sfirst preseason practice Wednesday morning, Brian Kelly pulleda copy of the roster from his back pocket, wanting to show it’stoo early to make definitive conclusions.
“I’m trying to figure out who’sgot what jersey on,” Kelly joked. The moment also illustratedhow many new players are on theteam. With 18 transfers and 23 freshmen, 48% of LSU’s scholarship players were not on theroster lastyear. Whilethe majorityofthempracticed in the spring, alot of new pieces need to fit together in ashortperiod of time
“If we were putting the team together for the first time today,I’d be nervous. Ireally would,” Kelly said. “But we’ve been doing this for sevenmonthswith this group.” Going into his fourth season, Kelly repeatedly has expressedconfidence in what LSU can accomplish. He thinksthe Tigers
theylook at theworkthathas to be done, and they attack it with extreme effort,and it has been ablessing to coach these guys dayinand day out. Icouldn’tbemore excited for the season.”
Someofthatfocuseddetermination stems from last year’stwo-game losing streak after a10-win regular season.
“I feel like this offseason has been like themost focused and themost goal-driven we’ve been (during) my time being here,” redshirt senior linebacker Cameron Whitfield said. “I feel like everybody’slocked in with theextra work. Youdon’t have to beg nobody to do it.Ithink it’s just astandard now.It’sset in place.
The coaching staff also will rely heavily on team speed. Both Desormeaux andoffensive coordinator TimLeger emphasized this is the fastest UL rosterthey’ve seen since joining the program 10 years ago.
blended astrong foundation of returning players with the No. 1transfer portalclass in thecountry,according to 247Sports.
Thething is, history is not on LSU’sside. At least not yet. Since the transfer portal beganinOctober2018, the eventual national champion never hasbeen built like this.Rosterconstruction has changed because of NIL and unlimitedtransfers, but the best teams have notleaned as heavily as LSU did on theportal. Over the past six years, the national champion never signed double-digit transfers the year it won thetitle.
That’sbound to change at some point. Transferring has become common, and theNCAAlets players change schools as many times as they wantduring their careers without sittingout. It has become increasingly difficult for coaches to manage rosters the way they used to.
This year,the power conference teams plus Notre Dame signedanaverage of
This is by far the most humbled, most disciplined and most ferocious team I’veever been around.”
CONNOR NEIGHBORS, UL strength and conditioning coach
The New Orleans Saints are athird of the waythrough training camp. There’sstill a long way to go, including three preseason games, but we’ve had enough time to draw someconclusions.
The Saints have conducted eight practices, three in full pads. So it’s still early,especially forthe young players and rookies. Ivividly recall how lost rookie receiver Marques Colston looked early in 2006 training camp. Then, two weeks in, the light bulb turned on, and Colston emerged as arookie starter and future star
Iknowitcan be difficulttoreservejudgment while monitoring breathless 24/7 coverageofcamp,but remember that someof these young players have hadonly tworuns through thesystem sincejoining theteam. Patience is avirtue.
With that in mind, here’swhat I’ve liked, loved and loathed from Airline Drive: Camp standouts
The best players I’ve seen so far, in no particular order,are Erik McCoy,Kool-Aid McKinstry,Rashid Shaheed, Chase Young, Chris Olave and Juwan Johnson. These six have stood out, both in the quality and consistency of their play
The New Orleans Saints were off from practice Friday,which gives aconvenient excuse to take abeat and measure what we’ve seen alittle morethan aweek into training camp. Who is having the best camp? Which quarterback is winning the QB battle? Who’srising and falling? It’s timefor somesuperlatives.
Best camp WR Rashid Shaheed: Shaheed’sphysicality has stood out all camp—something you wouldn’texpect from areceiver listed at 6feet, 180 pounds. But the fourth-year wideout told reporters he’sgained 10 pounds, and that has paid off in the way that Shaheed has snagged contested catches. Notably, he has not lost any speed in his attempt to beef up. This coaching staff seems enticed by Shaheed’sability and has used him on avariety of new routes that the previous coaching staff didn’t. He could be in store for abig year,ifhestays healthy Runner-up: CB Kool-AidMcKinstry
STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE
Saints wide receiver Rashid Shaheed catches the ballduring adrill on Wednesday at the team’spractice facility
ä See DUNCAN, page 3C
STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP
UL coach Michael Desormeaux speaks during Cajuns media dayahead of preseason camp on FridayatRusso Park.
The Cajuns will look to improve on last season’sSun Belt West title.
6p.m. Team Aaron vs. Robinson MLBN BEACH VOLLEYBALL
7p.m. AVPLeague: Week 7CW BIG3 BASKETBALL
Noon Boston vs. Detrois CBS CFL
6p.m.Saskatchewan atMontreal CBSSN CYCLING
9a.m. Tour de France CNBC GOLF
11 a.m. LPGA: AIG Women’sOpen NBC
Noon PGA: Wyndham ChampionshipGolf
2p.m. PGA: Wyndham ChampionshipCBS
5p.m. KornFerry:Utah Championship Golf HORSE RACING
2p.m. TheWhitneyStakes Fox MEN’S LACROSSE
Noon PLL: Newyork vs.DenverABC
LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL
9p.m. ConnieMack: TBD CBSSN MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
5p.m. Prelims: Undercard Bouts ESPN
8p.m. Albazi vs.Taira ESPN
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
1p.m. Baltimore at ChicagoCubs FS1
6p.m. Atlanta vs. Cincinnati Fox
9:30 p.m. St. LouisatSan DiegoMLBN NFL
noon Hall of Fame EnshrinementESPN
MEN’S SOCCER
11:25 a.m. Rangers at MotherwellCBSSN
6p.m.Valour FC at ForgeFCFS2
8p.m.ClubAmerica vs.MinnesotaFS1
10 p.m.Queretaro at Portland FS1
WOMEN’S SOCCER
3:55 p.m.Colombiavs. Brazil FS1
6:30 p.m.San DiegoatNorth Carolina ION
9p.m.Houston at BayION SOFTBALL
1p.m.Team Ocasiovs.Team Kilfoyl ESPN2
3:30 p.m.Team Lorenz vs.TeamCorrick ESPN2 TENNIS
11:30 a.m. Canada-ATP/WTATennis TRACK AND FIELD
3p.m.USATF: Outdoor &Para NBC WNBA
2p.m.Minnesota at Las VegasABC
Pittsburgh’s future treads murkywaters
GM Cherington believes deadlinemoves create options, butposition-player production aproblem
BY WILL GRAVES AP sportswriter
PITTSBURGH The Pittsburgh Pirates arrived at springtraining six months ago stressing that it was time to win. They talked abouturgency.Theytalked about internal improvements. They talked about returning to playoff contention for the first time in adecade. Then the games began, and the losses, both on and off the field, mounted.Quickly
Even the brilliance of superstar ace Paul Skenes and the fresh,no frills approachofmanager Don Kelly —promoted afterDerek Shelton was fired in May couldn’tstop the last-place club from being sellers at the trade deadline again.
LSU football gains pledge, abrother of current Tiger
LSUfootballadded acommitment FridayafternoonfromDarryus McKinley, athree-star defensive lineman out of Lafayette. McKinleyisthe No. 556 overall recruit in the2026 class, according to the 247Sports composite rankings, and the No. 19 prospect in Louisiana.Hegoes to Acadiana High. McKinley is the younger brother of LSUsophomore defensive lineman Dominick McKinley, who signedasa five-star recruit in the2024class. McKinley established himself as acoveted recruit in hisown right. Listed at 6-foot-3 and270 pounds, he also considered Florida, Tennessee and Texasasfinalists forhis commitment. He joins Baton Rouge five-star Lamar Brown and New Orleans four-star RichardAnderson as highly rated defensive linemen.
Former LSUwalk-on guard
season were to acquire first baseman Spencer Horwitz while taking one-year flyers on Pham and AdamFrazier,who has already been traded to Kansas City
The results have hardly been surprising. Horwitz has been steady (.252) since missing the first month-plus of the season due to awrist injury,but thepower Pittsburgh hopedwould come along remains awork in progress. Pham has emerged from amassive funk to boost his average to .273.
In away,the Pirates offense mirrors enigmatic centerfielder Oneil Cruz, whosometimes dazzles with his physical gifts but just as frequently draws attentionfor his inattentiveness.
Meanwhile, the inability to score runs has marreda remarkable season by thepitching staff. The Pirates entered Friday’sgame at Colorado in the topseven in the majorsinERA, led by Skenes and his major-leaguebest 1.83 ERA. The23-year-oldisa Cy Young candidatedespite entering the weekend with a6-8 record.
Ward joins Mulkey’sstaff Awalk-on guardwho played on the LSUwomen’s basketball2023 national championship team is joining coach Kim Mulkey’sstaff. Emily Ward, aBossier Citynative who played with the Tigers from 2019-23, is now the director of operations, the team announced Friday She’sfillingthe role left vacant by Jordin Westbrook, aMulkeystaff member who’sleaving the program to pursue other opportunities. After Ward’splaying career ended, she worked as acommunications staffmember with LSU athletics. That job included afew fill-in assignments as acolor analyst on the women’sbasketball radio broadcast. Hernew role will include marketing work, travel logistics coordination and other responsibilities.
Pels add 2021 first-round pickSpringer to backcourt
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By ABBIEPARR PittsburghPirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes walks to the dugout against the Minnesota Twins on July 11 in Minneapolis Cherington
In the span of 24 hours, general manager Ben Cherington sent away former franchisecornerstones Ke’Bryan Hayesand David Bednar in exchange for prospects, most of whom are years away from reaching the majors, if they ever even get there. It’sa pattern that has repeated itself during Cherington’s fiveplus years on the job. Yet, unlike theearlydaysof his top-to-bottom overhaul —when Cherington tore the major league roster down to the studs while accumulating as many bodies as he couldtoreplenish the club’sbereft minor-league system —itcomes at atimewhen expectations both internally and externally are considerablyhigher YetCherington believeshis approachchecked all threeboxes required to help Pittsburgh win in 2026,sayingthe Pirates added asignificant group of young players, most notably, catcher/first baseprospect Rafael Flores, who has 16 homers between Double-A and Triple-Athis season. The departure of Hayesat third base, Bednar,atwo-time All-Star closer,and left-handedstarter Bailey Falter will create opportunities for others down thestretch. Cherington also pointed out the expected exit of veterans currently on one-year deals —infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa, outfielder Tommy Pham and pitcher Andrew Heaney most notably —will create considerablefinancial flexibil-
ity asPittsburgh tries to upgrade an offense currently mired near the bottom of the majorsinmost offensivecategories.
“There’salways more things like that that you want to do,soI feel really good aboutthe things we did do,” Cherington said. “I do believe we put ourselvesina stronger position going intoAugust,September andthe offseason.”
Yetwhen pressedonwhat that fiscal flexibility might look like in practice for ateam that regularly begins each season with among the bottomfive clubs in terms of payroll,Cherington offered only vague answers.
“We’llbeopen-minded about free agency,” he said. “We’ve pursued legitimate major-league position players in the pasthere since I’ve been hereand I’m sure we’ll do it again. It’s never going to be onething that solves that issue and helps us figure out the offense thatleads toawinningteam. It’s alwaysgoing to be lots of things and alot of that has to happeninternally.”
Where will help come from?
Therein lies oneofPittsburgh’s biggest issues, for allofthe success Cherington andhis staff have had in identifying and developing young pitchers —there’savery real chance 22-year-old righthanderBubba Chandlermakes hismajor league debutlater this summer —the results when it comes to positionplayers is far moremiss than hit
While 19-year-old shortstop/ outfielder Konnor Griffin is currently consideredperhaps the topprospect in all of baseball, he is currently in Class A. Termarr Johnson, afirst-round pick in 2022, is having asolid but not exactly spectacular year at Double-A. They will both eventually be everydayplayers in Pittsburgh, but having that happen by next summer is astretch. So it leaves thePirates in afamiliar place: playing out the string knowing exactlywhattheyneed to do to be better next year.Pittsburgh was in the same spot last summer,and Cherington’sonly significant moves during theoff-
Just as importantly,Skeneshas consistently said and done all the right things since the Pirates took him first overallinthe 2023 draft. He brushed off the idea the club should tradehim now withhis value so high,saying simply “anybody can play GM.”
Yethis patiencemight already be wearing thin. Skenes —who will becomearbitration eligible after 2026, which will likely mean aheftyraise— toldthe club’s radio networkoverthe weekend that while he thinks Pittsburgh is “very close” to contending, it must “consciously andintentionally make moves to get us better” at the deadline.
Cherington —whose status beyond this season is uncertain as Pittsburgh eyes asixth straight losing season on his watch —may have finally said the quiet part out loud late Thursday as the Pirates eye another pennant race going on without them. Yes, they’ll have moneytospend over the winter Just don’texpect agold rush.
“(Improving) in Pittsburgh is going to be acombination of taking chances,making bets on young players who are unproven,” he said. “And we’ve got to continue to do that and be right moreoften than we’re not right on those.”
Theclock is ticking. In more ways than one.
BristoltohostTennessee’s first MLBgame
BY TERESA M. WALKER AP sportswriter
BRISTOL, Tenn. Bristol Motor Speedway is ready to make history by hosting the first Major League Baseball game in Tennessee. The stage, or in this case the racetrack, has been set forthe biggest crowd for aregular-season baseball game at Saturday night’sMLB Speedway Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds.
“The way the venuelooks really is somethingthat youcan puton paper,but you really can’tget a true vision of it until you actually put grandstands on the infield of the track, and you put 3,500 seats in the middle of 87,000 seats,” MLB senior vice president of global events Jeremiah Yolkut said Friday “Those things just don’t become areality until you actually see them.”
What fans will see Saturday is abaseball diamond tucked inside the infield of the half-mile bullring at Bristol. Atemporary
grandstand wraps around both sidelines with apress box at the top. Thetrack’sColossus videoboard hoversoverfoulterritory along the third base line. Any balls hit off Colossus will be foul.
Three-timeAll-Star Sean Casey played in aMarch 2008 exhibition betweenthe Red Sox and Dodgers with 115,300 at theLos Angeles Coliseum for thelargestcrowd ever to see abaseball game. Casey said Friday that the energyfrom thefansthatday was “incredible.”
“I thinkthe Reds and the Braves taking this field with 90,000-plus people atBristol Motor Speedway,the energy for this game is going to be off the charts,” Casey said after spending time on this field broadcasting withMLB Network.
MLB didn’ttry to top that 2008 mark for attendance, blockingoff seatsinTurns 3and 4atthe track with aracing capacity of 146,000.
Officials announced Monday thatmore than 85,000 tickets had been sold to top the previous paid attendance of 84,587 set Sept.12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium
hosted theNew York Yankees
Yolkut said adifference between now and the 2008game is this is aregular-season game andnot an exhibition. This game wasn’tabout simply packing peopleintoset arecordand telling some fans to just watch thegame on the videoboard.
“Wethought it was important to have as minimal obstruction seats as possible and tomake sure that the fans coming were going to have agreat experience,” Yolkut said.
TheRedsheld off theBraves 3-2inCincinnati on Friday afternoon.Thatgaveeveryone at Bristol time to preparefor Saturday’s spectacle.
The teams have separateclubhouses,with the Reds behind the baseball field’sgrandstand and the Braves just past theright field fence next to thetrack wall. Afew miles away,the Braves threw awatch partyatthe Bristol Paramount Theater for Friday’s game. Admission was free with souvenirs available and the concession standopen with the big screen view
The MLB FanZonejust outside the speedway’stowering walls featuresa110-foot Ferris wheel, food trucks, pitching tunnels and batting cages and team mascots. TimMcGraw and Pitbull will headline abig pre-game concert inside Bristol.Chipper Jones and Johnny Bench will handle the first pitch.
The chance to see history had fans arriving Thursday to take advantage of Bristol’scampgrounds.A group of Braves’ fans came from Charleston, South Carolina, and setuptents.
The124,000 square feet of AstroTurf will be donated after the game to East Tennessee State University as part of MLB’sBetter Together social responsibility initiative. ETSU has had 45 players taken in the MLB draft.
“Wealsoget the opportunity to investinthe community that’s hosting us,” said April Brown, MLB’ssenior vice president of social responsibility.“So this is incredibly important to our MLB Togetherpillars because education andpartnerships arekey to what we want to invest in.”
The New Orleans Pelicans signed guard Jaden Springer on Thursday.Springer,who played collegiately at Tennessee, was a late first-round pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2021 draft. He’s playedwith the 76ers, Boston Celtics and mostrecently with the UtahJazz. He wasa member of the Celtics’ championship team in the2023-24 season after being traded to Boston from Philly Springer has played in 110 games, including six starts, since arriving in the NBA. He’saveraging 2.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists. He scored acareer-high19 points in his secondseason with the 76ers. The signing of Springer cameaday after the Pelicans signed guard Bryce McGowens to atwo-waydeal.
Yankees releaseveteran right-hander Stroman
TheNew York Yankeesreleased veteran right-hander Marcus StromanonFriday,aday after making aflurry of moves at baseball’strade deadline.
Stroman,who is in his11th season in the majors, was cut ahead of the opener of athree-gameseries against the Miami Marlins.
Stroman signeda two-year deal worth $37 millionwith New York before the start of last season and is still owed the rest of his $18.5 millionsalary
He has an $18 millionconditional player option for2026 that would be exercised if he pitches 140 or more innings in 2025. Stroman has pitched only 39 innings so far this season,missing21/2 months with leftknee inflammation. Stromanis 3-2 with a6.23 ERA.
Enhanced Games signs femaleswimmer Romano
The Olympic-style sports venture that will run an eventnext year withnodrugtesting signed world-championswimmer Megan Romano as itsfirstfemaleand first American athlete Friday Romano, astandout swimmer at Georgia in college, anchored the U.S. 4x100 freestyle relay team to agold medal at world championships in 2013.
The Enhanced Gameswill debut next May in Las Vegas, featuring swimming, track andweightlifting competitions in an event that will allowathletes to use performance enhancers. The Enhanced Games will offer aprize purse of $500,000 for each event with $1 million bonuses going to anyone who breaks aworld record in the 100-meter sprint (track) and 50-meter freestyle (swimming).
CAJUNS
“The numbers bear that out,” Leger said. “There was a time here where we would have one guy in the 21 mile an hour range. Michael Jefferson would run around, and we had a bunch of guys in 20s.
“Now we have a pretty good group in that 21 mile an hour range. We have guys running 22 miles an hour, which we’ve never had here.”
Those characteristics are critical for the Cajuns, who have major
SAINTS
Continued from page 1C
Best quarterback
QB Spencer Rattler: Is Rattler starting to separate himself in this race? The second-year quarterback has looked decidedly more comfortable than Tyler Shough and has been more accurate than Jake Haener Rattler has thrown the ball well, and he appears to have taken a step forward ahead of his second season. That said, Rattler’s interceptions and consistency will be areas to monitor before the first preseason game.
The 24-year-old has thrown three picks in camp, and his second one really seemed to affect his play that day
Runner-up: Haener
Biggest surprise
G Trevor Penning: Penning’s position change has gone surprisingly smooth so far The preseason games will be the real test to see whether he can hold up, but he’s done well in a practice setting. Teammates and coaches have praised his aggressiveness, often noting the switch inside better suits his playing style. And Penning has agreed with that framing, telling reporters that he has felt comfortable since moving on from tackle.
Runner-up: K Blake Grupe
Biggest disappointment
RB Kendre Miller: Here’s a positive for Miller: He hasn’t gotten hurt after an injury-plagued start to his career But the Saints have the third-year running back going fourth in individual reps — behind Alvin Kamara, Clyde EdwardsHelaire and rookie Devin Neal and has spent time with the thirdteam offense during team drills. Perhaps the coaches are trying to send Miller a message by keeping him lower in the pecking order, but if they are, it hasn’t appeared to take hold. This isn’t meant to write off Miller he’ll have a rep or two in which he bursts through the line — but he hasn’t created separation in the team’s crowded
DUNCAN
Continued from page 1C
Still waiting
Among the veteran players I’d like to see more from are Cam Akers, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Cedrick Wilson, Donovan PeoplesJones, Nathan Shepherd and Khalen Saunders.
Of veterans, Sean Payton used to say he didn’t need to see it all the time, but he needed to see it at some point. That’s where I stand with each player in this group.
QB battle wide open
The quarterback competition is highly competitive. Spencer Rattler has made the most explosive plays and looked the most decisive of the trio. But Tyler Shough and Jake Haener also have had days where they’ve performed the best.
I obviously was being hyperbolic on social media when I called Shough’s work in the two-minute offense Thursday “the worst in NFL history.” It was a rough session for the rookie, albeit not entirely his fault. But I’m not sure I’ve seen an offense lose yardage on three consecutive plays to start a two-minute drill That’s not what’s supposed to happen With Shough, you can see the traits that led the Saints to select him high in the second round of the NFL draft. But he remains a work in progress, which is to be expected from a rookie in his second week of camp.
The preseason games could prove decisive in the competition If this were a political race, it would be too close to call.
Rookie run
This rookie class will see more playing time than groups from recent years.
Kelvin Banks is cemented as the starting left tackle. At times, classmates Shough, Vernon Broughton,
shoes to fill in all areas.
On offense, the strength of last year’s team was the unit’s efficiency, largely behind Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year Ben Wooldridge and redshirt senior backup Chandler Fields at quarterback.
“We got points out of most of our drives in some way, shape or form (lastseason),”Desormeauxsaid.“We kept the other offense off the field.
“I don’t know that this team will be exactly that way You know, with two quarterbacks last year — who had a really good understanding — they fixed a lot of the issues.
This year, I don’t know if we’ll be able to get to that level or not.”
With an extra gear, though, “You can still score points, just might look a little bit different,” Desormeaux said. On defense, it’s going to be different without K.C. Ossai running things at linebacker
“We’ve got a bunch of great young men that have been a part of this program a lot longer than I have been here,” defensive coordinator Jim Salgado said. “It’s their turn to step up, you know — the Tyree Skippers, Jordan Lawsons, Kadarius Miller guys that have played a lot of football here and have helped this program get to where it’s at right now.”
SAINTS ADD O-LINEMAN WITH ORGANIZATIONAL TIES
The Saints plan to sign offensive lineman Shane Lemieux the NFL Network reported. Lemieux spent last season with the Saints, appearing in seven games and starting four The 28-year-old carries positional flexibility as he can play guard and center New Orleans previously hosted Lemieux for a tryout during mandatory minicamp in June
Last season, Lemieux primarily played center for the Saints as he filled in for an injured Erik McCoy. If he stays at the position for this year’s training camp, he’ll compete with Will Clapp and Kyle Hergel as the backup center.
running back room.
Runner-up: DE Isaiah Foskey
Three risers
WR Mason Tipton, LB Danny Stustman, TE Jack Stoll: Just like last year, Tipton has been a training camp star The former Yale receiver made the team’s 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent last year because he was a target machine, and he’s been a go-to for all three quarterbacks this year as well. The big question: Can his practice production translate to games? It didn’t last year, with Tipton catching only 14 passes for 99 yards in 11 appearances. Stutsman and Stoll have had good moments. Stutsman made a great read when he picked off Rattler early in camp and has since earned steady work with the starters when either Demario Davis or Pete Werner sits. Stoll has taken advantage of a light tight end room that hasn’t seen Taysom Hill (knee) and Foster Moreau (knee) practice yet.
Runner-up: RB Velus Jones
Three fallers
WR Bub Means, C Will Clapp, K Charlie Smyth: Outside of a wide-open touchdown from Haener on Day 2, Means has had a very quiet camp That’s been an unexpected development after he had a strong spring. It might be worth noting he also had a slow summer last year, but he was coming off an unspecified injury to open camp.
Quincy Riley and Danny Stutsman also have worked with first-team units. At the very least, the last three will start the season as primary backups
Jonas Sanker has worked with the second team at safety and running back Devin Neal is solidly in the mix as Alvin Kamara’s backup.
Backup backs
The backup running back spots are up for grabs. No one has emerged as the No. 2 or No. 3 back behind Kamara yet. With this in mind, the preseason games will be big for this group.
Look for all of the backup runners to get extended run, starting with the exhibition opener against the Chargers next week.
Areas of concern
Depth is a major issue at tight end with Foster Moreau and Taysom Hill sidelined Johnson needs to stay healthy until they return from the physically unable to perform list.
The Saints pursued Noah Fant, but the veteran tight end signed with Cincinnati on Thursday He would have helped this team
Other thin positions are cornerback, receiver, nose tackle and offensive tackle.
Look for the Saints to try to address all of these areas before the start of the season, especially after roster cuts occur
Dizzying D
New defensive coordinator Brandon Staley’s 3-4 scheme is fun to watch The scheme is complicated and uses a lot of post-snap movement to stress the offense and create confusion in blocking assignments. At times, it can create havoc. The defense is throwing a lot at the young quarterbacks.
Likewise, the Saints have mixed and matched their pass coverages throughout camp and have been aggressive with their blitz pack-
The plan is for more speed at cornerback and playmaking ability at safety to help produce better overall numbers.
“I think it always starts with the run game, right?” Salgado said.
“We always want to improve there, stopping a run. And hopefully, we’re going to be able to play that a little bit better than what we did last year.”
On special teams, Lou Groza Award winner Kenny Almendares is gone and so is holder Dalen Cambre.
Matthew Paras
As for Clapp’s inclusion, the veteran offensive lineman hasn’t been the most consistent snapper this summer He had two bad snaps Thursday that arguably contributed to both of Shough’s interceptions. Clapp previously played for the Saints from 201821, and he was brought back this offseason because he played under Kellen Moore in 2023 when they were with the Los Angeles Chargers. Given that familiarity, his struggles have been surprising.
Smyth hasn’t pushed for Grupe’s starting job because of inconsistency He’s missed seven kicks to Grupe’s one.
Runner-up: C Kyle Hergel
Tightest competition
Interior defensive line: Jonathan Bullard’s signing to this group complicated what has been a competitive race. Someone will be the odd man out, but it’s far too early to tell who it will be. In four-front sets with the first team, the defensive tackles mostly have been Bryan Bresee and Nathan Shepherd. But the Saints have experimented with Bullard, Davon Godchaux, Khalen Saunders, Vernon Broughton and Jonah Williams in those spots. The Saints will have three interior linemen in their 3-4 base defense, and Bresee and Godchaux seem to have locked up two of those spots. But looks from nickel and other packages seem to be up for grabs.
Runner-up: Punter
LSU
Continued from page 1C
21.4 transfers, according to data pulled from 247Sports’ class rankings. Only eight teams — Florida, Tennessee, Iowa State, Clemson, Duke, Iowa, Penn State and Notre Dame — added less than 10 transfers.
Even Clemson took its first-ever defensive transfer At first, transfers hardly affected the eventual championship teams. A few LSU players in 2019 began their careers at other schools, including Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrow, but they had transferred before the portal was created. At the time, undergraduate transfers still had to sit out for a year
Transfers did not fill the next three championship teams, either Alabama won the 2020 national title after signing two, neither of whom made an impact. Georgia added three before it won in 2021, the same year the NCAA allowed underclassmen to transfer once without losing a year of eligibility
Though Georgia targeted some transfers the next offseason, it didn’t sign any before winning the championship again. Things began to change with Michigan in 2023. Its roster was still built on experienced homegrown players, but the Wolverines signed nine transfers. Most importantly, they panned out at a high rate. All but one of them, a backup quarterback, played in at least 13 games that season. Ohio State followed a similar blueprint last year The Buckeyes famously spent $20 million in NIL, helping them sign Kansas State quarterbackWillHoward,Alabama safety Caleb Downs, Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins and Alabama center Seth McLaughlin. But the money also went toward retainingkeyveterans,whoformed the backbone of the team. There nearly have been some exceptions, especially the past three years. TCU went to the 2023 national championship
ages. They’ll primarily be a matchzone scheme in the secondary Nickel competition
The third corner spot is a work in progress. Isaac Yiadom has held down the starting role throughout camp, but Riley is nipping at his heels. This position battle could go down to the wire. Whoever wins the job will stay outside in coverage, opposite McKinstry with Alontae Taylor manning the slot or Star position in Staley’s scheme.
The nickel package could have as many as three new faces in the personnel package with Riley and safeties Justin Reid and Julian Blackmon, so this area of defense might take some time to gel.
Improved run defense?
Expect the run defense to be improved — and it needs to be after ranking No. 30 in the league a year ago.
Giuliani said the holder candidates include receiver Landon Strother, receiver Dale Martin, quarterback Lunch Winfield and snapper Hunter Sims.
“Fall camp is incredibly important,” Desormeaux said. “I think that’s where you find the identity of our football team. That’s where you create it.”
“I think you’ve got guys that talked about working while they waited who have been here for a number of years,” said special teams coordinator Mike Giuliani of Logan Klotz, Tony Sterner and Brek Schultz. “The spring was unbelievable. It was really exciting to watch them compete with each other because I think that’s where everything starts as competition.”
game after signing 14 transfers, and Washington added 10 before going to the College Football Playoff and finishing runner-up to Michigan a year later Florida State, one of the most consistently active teams in the portal, signed at least 10 transfers every year from 2020-24. The strategy worked in 2023, when the Seminoles went 13-1 and won the ACC, only to be left out of the playoff after an injury to quarterback Jordan Travis. But last year after signing 17 transfers and the nation’s No. 7 class, they plummeted to 2-10. The first team to win a title with double-digit transfers could come soon. In the inaugural 12team playoff last year, half the field had signed at least 10 transfers going into the season. Only two teams, Clemson and Penn State, signed less than eight. Oregon, the No. 1 overall seed and Big Ten champion, assembled the second-ranked transfer class in the country behind Ole Miss, but the Rebels showed a top portal class doesn’t guarantee anything.
Starting with the 2022 class, Ole Miss began to build its roster through the transfer portal. It has signed four straight classes with at least 20 transfers, and it has won 10-plus games in three of the past four seasons. It also hasn’t made the CFP After signing the No. 1 class in the country last year, the Rebels went 9-3 in the regular season. That’s what LSU is trying to avoid. 247Sports has ranked transfer classes for the past four years, and the other teams that finished No. 1 — Southern Cal (2022), Colorado (2023) and Ole Miss (2024) — have yet to reach the playoff. Perhaps LSU can be the first to win it all this way If it does, it could show something has changed about roster building. “I love what I’ve seen about this football team,” Kelly said. “That’s why I’ve been bullish on our team. Now we’ve got to go play You’ve got to go win the games and execute when you need to execute. But I like where we’re at.”
to have a reduced role in his 15th season.
With Young and Carl Granderson locked into the starting outside linebacker spots, Jordan has worked primarily as a backup outside linebacker and defensive end. His primary role likely will be as a situational pass rusher in passing situations when the Saints switch to their nickel and dime packages.
At this stage of his stellar career, less is probably more for Jordan.
Undrafted rookies to watch
Three undrafted rookies have caught my eye: guard Easton Kilty running back Marcus Yarns and defensive end Jasheen Davis. All three have flashed ability in team and seven-on-seven drills. Undrafted rookies always have an uphill battle for a roster spot, but I expect them to get extended playing time during preseason games. It wouldn’t be a surprise if each landed on the practice squad.
Team officials identified this as an area of weakness and invested significant resources this offseason to address it. Free agents Reid, Blackmon, Jonathan Bullard, Davon Godchaux, and rookies Broughton, Stutsman and Sanker are all solid run defenders. On their first day in pads, the Saints opened team drills with three straight runs, and the defense stuffed each one. A good early sign. Speaking of Bullard, his late signing went under the radar, but the veteran defensive end is challenging for a starting spot. He fills a role as a situational run defender at the other end opposite Bryan Bresee.
Situational role
Cam Jordan has started 225 of 226 games in his career, but the veteran end’s days as a full-time player might be over He looks
Sign of the times?
This is definitely the lightest training camp I’ve experienced in my 26 years covering the Saints. The practices are lively but short, and with very little hitting. The Saints still haven’t conducted a live tackling session, and I haven’t seen one set of gassers or conditioning runs.
At the risk of sounding like a dinosaur I’m not a huge fan of the new CBA rules that limit contact during the preseason. It complicates the evaluation process, especially for running backs and linebackers, when there’s no live tackling.
No one is asking to return to full-contact two-a-days, but there’s a happy medium to reach between the Junction Boys days and 2025. Just my two cents.
Email Jeff Duncan at jduncan@theadvocate.com.
STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE
Saints quarterback Tyler Shough hands the ball off to running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire in a drill during training camp on Thursday at the team’s practice facility
on Nov. 7.
SCOREBOARD
p.m.
Nonconference schedule setfor UL men’sbasketball
Tulane settomake firsttriptoCajundome since2009-10 season PROVIDED PHOTO
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
The nonconferenceopponents for coach Quannas White’sfirst UL men’sbasketball team were releasedFriday
The home portion is highlighted by Tulane’sfirst trip to the Cajundome since 2009 and the first meeting between the programs
since 2018. The first home gameinthe White erawill be againstSoutheastern Louisiana onNov.7,four days before the Green Wave comes to town.
The season opens on the road Nov.3atBall State, andthena two-game homestand will be followedbyafour-game road trip.
UL stays close to home, playing at McNeese on Nov.14inLake Charles, before heading to California for three games.
UL will play at Stanfordon Nov.18, SantaClara on Nov.21 andUCDavis on Nov.24.
The other homegames include
Jackson StateonNov.28, UNC WilmingtononDec. 6and Norfolk StateonDec. 28. Wilmingtonhas won99games over thepastfour seasons, including winning the CAA league title last season toearn an NCAA Tournament berth. Norfolk State has won 111 games over the past five seasons and made three NCAATournamentappearances. The finalnonconference road game is at Louisiana Tech Dec. 13. Email KevinFooteatkfoote@ theadvocate.com.
Padresmakewaves at deadline
Seattle, Houstonalso make notablemoves
BYNOAHTRISTER
Associated Press
For the second time in four years, A.J. Preller turnedthe San Diego Padres into the biggest stars of baseball’strade deadline. In 2022, the San Diego general manager snagged slugger JuanSoto, sending James Wood, MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abramsand three others to Washington in an eight-player blockbuster. Then on Thursday,the aggressive Preller pulled off aslightly less seismic version of that deal, trading top prospect
Leo De Vries to the Athletics and bringing back closerMason Miller Prospects that highly touted are rarelydealt anymore. De Vries, ashortstop,isranked No 3overall by MLB Pipeline. Last year at the deadline, none of Baseball America’stop 100 prospects were traded.
By the time this year’sdeadline passed,Preller hadtraded14 players and acquired eight. Lefthanders JP Sears and Nestor Cortes, first baseman Ryan O’Hearn and outfielder Ramón Laureano were among those the Padres landed in addition to Miller,anAll-Star lastseason whois under team control through 2029. Here’s adivision-by-division look at this year’sdeadline: AL East
Toronto leads the division by 31/2 games, but the Blue Jays have dropped four of five. They tooka gamble, albeit onewith some upside, in acquiring 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber,who has made severalrehab starts as he works toward areturn from Tommy John surgery.The second-place Yankees added All-Star relievers David Bednar and Camilo Doval to their bullpen and acquired some more power in third baseman Ryan McMahon. Boston’s deadlinewas less inspiring, unless oft-injured right-hander DustinMay can get hot down the stretch.
Baltimore has shown it can build astrong farmsystem of position players, but poor pitching has the Orioles in lastplace this year.They did add some interesting minor league arms overthe past week while selling off more than ahalf-dozen players. Tampa Bayis31/2 games out of aplayoff spot and added reliever Griffin Jaxand starting pitcher Adrian Houser, but the Rays also traded away adependable starter in Zack Littell. Just assume the
thinglikely to movethe needle much as they trytomake up ground.
The Athletics are finally making news for reasons other than their nomadic existence. Add De Vries to an organization that already has two of the game’stop rookies in the majors, and the future looks alittle brighter
NL East
unorthodox Raysknow what they’re doing andmove on.
AL Central
Kansas City is ahalf-game behind Cleveland in thestandings, and both haveabout a13% chance of making thepostseason, according to FanGraphs. Butthey went in opposite directions at thedeadline. The Royals largely stayed thecourse, making someunder-the-radar additionslike outfielder Mike Yastrzemski and left-hander Bailey Falter,while the Guardians —who are three games out of a playoff spot —dealt away Bieber and reliever Paul Sewald. Of course, that’snothing compared to theway Minnesota tore apart its roster,trading Jax, infielder Carlos Correa, reliever Jhoan Durán andmore than ahalfdozenothers.
Detroit didn’t have aterribly sexydeadline but added starters Charlie Morton and Chris Paddackalongwith afew bullpen arms. TheWhite Sox held onto outfielderLuis Robert. He has cluboptions forthe next two years, so perhaps we haven’t heard the last about his potential trade value.
AL West
Seattle threw down thegauntlet Wednesday night by acquiringslugging third baseman EugenioSuárez. Then Houston answered Thursday by bringingCorrea backtothe team that drafted him. Thedifference between these moves is that Correa is under contractthroughatleast 2028, while Suárez can becomea free agentthis offseason. But the Mariners can worry about that later Texas, whichisfive games behind the first-place Astros but just agame behind Seattle for the final wild card, added Merrill Kelly to itsrotation. He mayhavebeen thebest starting pitcher dealt —but pitching hasn’tbeen theproblem for the Rangersthisyear
TheAngelsare the worst team in the American League that didn’tmake aclear move toward selling. And they didn’tdoany-
The Mets lead Philadelphia by ahalf-game atop this division, and bothteams went big on bullpen help. New York went for quantity with Gregory Soto, Tyler Rogers and Ryan Helsley, while the Phillies made one huge moveinadding Duran. Miami held ontoSandy Alcantara. Perhaps his value will improve by theoffseason —right now he has a6.36 ERA in his first season back from Tommy John surgery Washington sold in fairly predictable fashion, but Atlanta —currently 16 games under .500 —curiously held ontoRaisel Iglesias despite no shortage of teams looking for late-inning relievers.
NL Central Milwaukee and theCubs boast thegame’stwo best records, and they appear reasonably satisfied with what they have. Both added somebullpen help. Cincinnati was more aggressive, acquiring Littell from theRays and Gold Glove third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes from Pittsburgh. Trading Hayes within the division was a gamble by thePirates, given that he’sunder team control through 2030, but he has an OPS well under .600 for the second straight year.Pittsburgh is under pressure to improve while former LSUstar PaulSkenes is young and cheap. St.Louis looked like abuyer amonth ago, but theCardinals have lost 17 of 25 and are now a .500 team.
NL West San Diego’sflurry of moves didn’tdrawaparticularly brazenresponsefromthe Dodgers, who wereactually on the prospect-receiving end of the deal that sent May to Boston. San Francisco, certainly looked like abuyer when it acquired Rafael Deversearlier this season, but now the fading Giants areunder .500 and will hope the haul of prospects they received —particularly from the Mets and Yankees for Rogers and Doval —pan out. Arizona had two of the best trade chips on the market in Suárez and Kelly and cashed in both. Colorado’sassetswereless enticing, but theRockies did unload McMahon and his contract.
Mensik (12),Czechia,6-2,6-4. Jiri Lehecka(19),Czechia,def.Arthur Fils (15),France, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Andrey Rublev(6),Russia, def. Lorenzo Sonego (28),Italy, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Frances Tiafoe (7), United States, def.Aleksandar Vukic, Australia,6-3,4-6,6-3 Flavio Cobolli (13), Italy, def. Fabian Marozsan, Hungary,6-2,4-6,6-3 TaylorFritz (2), United States,def.Gabriel Diallo (27),Canada, 6-4, 6-2. WTANational Bank Open At IGA Stadium &AvivaCentre, Montreal Surface: Hardcourt outdoor Women’s singles Round of 32 ClaraTauson (16),Denmark, def. Yuliia Starodubtseva, Ukraine,6-3,6-0 Naomi Osaka,Japan, def. Jelena Ostapenko (22),Latvia,6-2,6-4 Anastasija Sevastova,Latvia,def.Jessica Pegula(3),United States,3-6, 6-4, 6-1. Madison Keys (6), United States,def.Caty McNally,UnitedStates,2-6,6-3,6-3. IgaSwiatek(2),Poland, def. EvaLys,Germany, 6-2, 6-2. Golf
LPGA Tour Women’s British Open At RoyalPorthcawlGC;
at
(Brown5-7), 1:20 p.m. Kansas City (Cameron5-4)atToronto (Scherzer1-1), 2:07 p.m. Detroit (Skubal 10-3) at Philadelphia (Wheeler 9-4), 3:05 p.m. Houston (Gordon 4-3) at Boston (Buehler 6-6), 3:10 p.m. Minnesota (TBD)atCleveland (Bibee 7-9), 3:10 p.m. N.Y. Yankees (Schlittler1-1)atMiami (Pérez 3-3), 3:10 p.m. Texas(deGrom 10-3) at Seattle(Castillo 8-6) 3:10 p.m. Arizona (Gallen 7-12) at Athletics (Ginn2-2), 9:05 p.m. Chicago White Sox(Civale2-6)atL.A. Angels (Hendricks 6-7),9:07 p.m.
Milwaukee at Washington, n N.Y. Yankees at Miami, n San Francisco at N.Y. Mets, n L.A. DodgersatTampaBay,n Pittsburgh at Colorado, n St. Louis at San Diego, n Arizona at Athletics, n Saturday’s games L.A. Dodgers(Snell1-0) at TampaBay (Rasmussen 8-5), 12:10 p.m. Baltimore(Sugano 8-5) at ChicagoCubs (Brown5-7), 1:20 p.m. Pittsburgh (Skenes6-8)atColorado (Gomber 0-5), 2:10 p.m. Detroit (Skubal 10-3) at Philadelphia (Wheeler 9-4), 3:05 p.m. Milwaukee (Woodruff 2-0) at Washington (Irvin8-5), 3:05 p.m. N.Y. Yankees (Schlittler1-1)atMiami (Pérez 3-3), 3:10 p.m. San Francisco (TBD)atN.Y. Mets (Senga 7-3), 3:10 p.m. Atlanta (Strider 5-8) at Cincinnati (Burns 0-3), 6:15 p.m. Arizona (Gallen 7-12) at Athletics (Ginn2-2), 9:05 p.m. St. Louis (McGreevy 2-2) at San Diego (Vásquez 3-4), 9:10 p.m. Pro football NFL preseason glance Thursday’s score L.A. Chargers 34, Detroit7 Thursday, Aug. 7 Indianapolis at Baltimore, 6p.m. Cincinnati at Philadelphia,6:30 p.m. Las
Quannas White’s first UL team will open its home schedule against SoutheasternLouisiana
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO
Pitcher Mason Millerisnow with San Diegoafter Oakland traded him for top prospect Leo De Vries on Thursday. Analysis
Howbestto handle the complicated livesofteens
If you’ve spent any time around teens —boysorgirls you’ve probably heard or used the word “drama” to describe teens’ angsty and emotionally reactive behavior. Drama most often occurs when teens experience awkward, hostile and uncomfortable social behaviors within relationships
Howcan youhelpateen?
Understand that social relationships today are much, much more complex than they werewhen you were that age Social media has made communication easier,but it has made accurately interpreting pictures, texts and in-person behavior much more difficult and complex.
When Iwas in school in the ’80s, teens were much better at interpreting social cues becausewespent more time in face-to-faceinteractions. Today’steens are on screensnine or more hours per day,leaving themwith less time in person with each other They are navigating hundreds of relationships and thousands of interactions on social media, especially on Snapchat and Instagram. Those “likes,” not “liking” or “hearting” something; reading or leaving someone “unread” are powerful ways they communicate that can leave teens feeling hurt and left out.
Youcan’t ‘fix’ theirdrama
Most often, teens don’twant you to fix their drama, and chances are, you probably cannot.
Not that there aren’ttimes when matters are very serious, and parentsand other adults should get more involved.But in general, teens want you to be present andwork harder at understanding what is going on and, more importantly,how they feel about it.
Advice, even if it’sgood, from people who don’treally understand their experience is usually unhelpful
Practice active listening
In addition to focusing on the content of what the teen is saying, try to understand howthey feelabout it. Are theyhurt, scared, embarrassed, nervous, ashamed or feeling left out?
Listening calms down the amygdala and engages the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, which can generate solutions,alternative considerations and amore accurate interpretation of the events. So if ateen has been leftunread by afriend for several hourswhen they normally respond instantly, listening to them mayhelpthem gainperspective and generate alternative scenarios, such as, “Maybe theirphone died.”
When we listen welland ask genuinely curious and clarifying questions it can help them see the event more objectively
Askclarifyingquestions
When you don’tunderstand something,ask aboutit. You might say,“Iknow it can be frustrating to have to ‘catch me up,’ but you are important to me and so is what you’re going through right now.Ireally want to understand. Can you explain ______?”
Even if the teen expresses frustration, it’smostly about the situation, and they interpret this subconsciouslyasyou caring about them. Additionally,when there’s apart that you’re not clear about, chances are the teen isn’tfullyclear about it either.Asking about it helps them form amore
ROLLINGON THERIVER
NewBRcruisebringscocktails,brunch andabit of historytothe Mississippi
BY MARGARETDELANEY
writer
Staff
Ahoy! Ahoy! Louisiana boat enthusiasts andbrunchloversalike can now embarkonaMississippi
River cruise in the heart of downtown Baton Rouge.
Baton Rouge Cruises, captained by ownerDuncan Armentor,hosts hourlong sightseeingrides along theBaton Rouge shoreline every day Armentor,a lifelong boater and previous river cruise captain in New Orleans, bought the Jacqueline Queen paddle wheel boat in Baltimore and thought Baton Rouge could usethe business.
The paddle wheel boat offers something foreveryoneinterms of its menu of cruises, but its most popular event is the narrated tour Theone-hourridefloatsnorth along the Mississippi, featuring information on local landmarks such as Louisiana’sOld State Capitol.
“It’sa really nice educational cruise for people locally andfor people that aren’t familiarwith Baton Rouge,” Armentor said. “We havefamiliesthatcomeonboard andbring their children. We have hadseniors. We’ve had college patrons andkids, andLSU sororities have found us already.” Cocktail cruises bring aslice of
downtown nightlife to the river tours, where guests can sipcocktailsonThursdayand Friday nights —orwatch thesunset with afull buffet on Saturday nights.
“It’s atwo-hour,basically,booze cruise,”Armentor said. “Yourfirst cocktail is on us.”
Sunday rides bring bottomless mimosas andbreakfast on the paddle wheel boat
Theadventure starts with complimentary pickup from Baton Rouge Cruises’ parking lot, at 900
GLOBAL TIES,LOCAL IMPACT
DergueneMbaye of Senegal, a2025 Mandela Washington FellowatLSU, stands withHannah Sensenbrenner Morrow, aprogram presenter,at thefellowship’sclosing ceremonies at LSU on July 25.
BY JANRISHER Staff writer
River Road, Baton Rouge. Passengers are dropped offwhere the vessel is docked.
The $36.50 boating experience is gaining attention online and with event groups. On board, visiting boaters have access to asnack and drinks menu ranging from $2 to $9. The two-hour “booze cruises” on weekends include: n The Friday night cocktails cruise, at $45 per person, includes
ä See CRUISE, page 6C
From mid-June through the end of July,24young leaders from 18 sub-Saharan countries became LSU Tigers —even joining in thecampus celebration afterLSU’s baseball team wonthe College
applicants, theMandela Washington Fellows—all between the ages of 25 and 35 —participated in theflagship
Roy Petitfils
Armentor
PROVIDED PHOTOS
Baton RougeCruises, captained by owner Duncan Armentor,hosts hourlong sightseeing rides along the Baton Rougeshoreline every dayaboard the Jacqueline Queen.
Pastries and ahot brunch menu are availableonthe Sunday ridesonthe paddle-wheel boat (as well as mimosas and cocktails)
In constant search of precious alone time
Dear Miss Manners: Iattend asmall college of about 550 students. Although Iamonfriendly terms with many of them, my close friend group is about five people.
Lately I’ve been dealing with clingy folks who don’t give me space. They will demand conversations as late as 11 p.m., walk with me wherever Igo, and whenever they see me, they want to talk for over an hour.When Itry to set boundaries by gracefully excusing myself to study,they sometimes still follow me. It’snot just studying for which I excuse myself, either.Sometimes
Iwould just appreciate sometime alonetoread or call afriend. Is wanting time alone alegitimate reason for excusing myself? And if they still refuse to give me that time alone, what are your suggestions?
Judith Martin MISS MANNERS
Gentle reader: Telling someone that you would rather be alonethan havetoendure theircompanionship is discourteous. Butthe good news is youdonot needanexcuse at all.
“I’m sorry,but Ireally have to go.I will catch up with youlater,” isall Miss Manners suggests you say. Andthen run. Dear MissManners: Do Ineed to
RELIGION BRIEFS FROM
St. Joseph Baptist
STAFFREPORTS
plans annual festival
St. Joseph Baptist Church will host its eighth annual Everybody’sBirthday Taste Fest at 4p.m. Sunday, Aug. 24, at the Addis Community Center,7828 La.1 Addis. The afternoon will be filled with food,fun and fellowship as everyone’s birthday is celebratedtogether Tickets are $15. Children ages 5and youngerattend free. All are invited. Visit eventbrite.com for more information.
NewPilgrim2025
Women’sConference
The SWIFF Women’s Ministry invitesall women to the2025 Women’s Conference from 9a.m. to noon Saturday,Aug. 16, at New PilgrimBaptist Church, 4277 Old Weis Road, Zachary Join for amorning of spiritual renewal, empowering teachings and joyful fellowship centeredon Proverbs 3:5-6. Featured speakers includethe Rev.Linda Johnson and Dr.Linda Fontenot Acontinental breakfast will be servedduring check-in,and box lunches will be provided Doors open at 8:30 a.m. Free venue parking is available. Allare also welcometo return at 10 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 17, for aworship service featuring guest speaker,the Rev.Dr. Mary WhitleyMoss.
TODAYINHISTORY
By The Associated Press
Today is Saturday, Aug. 2, the 214th day of 2025. There are 151 days left in the year
Todayinhistory
On Aug. 2, 1921, ajury in Chicago acquitted seven former members of the Chicago White Sox baseball team and two others of conspiring to defraud the public in the notorious “Black Sox” scandal (though they would later be banned from Major League Baseball for life by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis).
Also on this date:
In 1790, the first United States Census began under the supervision of Thomas Jefferson; atotal of 3,929,214 people were counted in the census, nearly 700,000 of whom were enslaved. In 1876, frontiersman “Wild Bill”Hickok was shot and killed while playing poker at asaloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory,byJack McCall, who was later hanged. In 1923, the 29th president of the UnitedStates, Warren G. Harding, died in San Francisco; Vice PresidentCalvin Coolidge became president In 1934, German President Paul von Hindenburg died, paving the way for
CRUISE
Continued from page5C
one free cocktail,aPaddlewheel punch and access to soft drinks and snacks on board.
n Saturdaysunset cocktails and appetizers, at $89.50 per person, includes an array of bite-sized foods, one free cocktail and access to softdrinks and snacks on board.
n Sundaybreakfast brunch and mimosas, at $85 per person, includes bottomless mimosas, pastries, various breakfast foods like bacon and scrambled eggs and access to soft drinks and snacks on board
The boat cruise offers private charter options with food packages starting at $36.99 per person, available for events like wedding rehearsals and corporate events. Equipped with
Adolf Hitler’scomplete takeover
In 1945, PresidentHarry S. Truman, Sovietleader Josef Stalin andBritain’s new prime minister, ClementAttlee, concluded the Potsdam conference. In 1974, former White House counsel JohnW Dean III was sentenced to one to fouryears in prison for obstruction of justice in the Watergate cover-up. (Dean ended up serving four months.)
In 1985,137 peoplewere killedwhen Delta Air Lines Flight 191, aLockheed L-1011 TriStar, crashed while attempting toland at Dallas-FortWorthInternational Airport. In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of theoil-rich emirate. (The Iraqis were later driven outbythe U.S. in Operation DesertStorm.)
Today’sBirthdays: Author Isabel Allendeis83. Actor Butch Patrick (TV:“The Munsters”) is 72. Rock music producer/drummer Butch Vigis70. Actor Mary-Louise Parker is 61. FilmmakerKevinSmithis 55. Actor Sam Worthington is 49. Actor Edward Furlong is 48. Actor Lily Gladstoneis39. Singer Charli XCX is 33. Olympic swimminggold medalist Simone Manuelis29.
Starlink internet access and movable seating, the cruise is fully customizable for whoeverisonboard.
“I’ve alwayshad alove for the passenger-carrying vessel,”Armentor said.
“So when my wife and I were travelingaround in Baltimore,wespotted one forsale, andwe just took a shot at bringingitintoBaton Rougeharbor.” To celebratethe holiday, Armentor andBaton Rouge Cruises are hosting aLabor Day party cruise on Aug. 31 —boarding starts at 5p.m., the boat departs at 6p.m. and docks back to shore at 8p.m. Formore information on upcomingtours and booking,find it on Instagram,call (225) 377-5958 or email book@ batonrougecruise.com
Email MargaretDeLaney at margaret.delaney@ theadvocate.com
place afresh, unusedbar of soap in the guest bathroom for every new guest Ihost? Sometimes people stay for justone night. Tossing soap that’sonly been used once seems wasteful. Doesn’tsoap “clean” itself withevery use?
Gentlereader: Does it? Miss Manners has often wondered about themechanics of that herself.
As longasthe soap is adequately inspected and cleared of debris, she sees nothing wrong with reusing it.Just promise not to let it devolve into that weird splintering thing it becomes when it has clearly seen too many guests.
Dear Miss Manners: Likemany old women, Iobject tobeing called “young lady” and Ifind it offen-
sive. (I do not want anyone to call me this, but only older men tend to do so.)When Ipoint out to them that Iamnot young, they either argue with me or scold me for not being “young at heart.”
My mother used to tell such men to getnew glasses. That was not successful, either.Itseems harsh to inform them that if they persist in calling me “young lady,” Iwill try to avoid them. Do you have anysuggestions?
Gentlereader: “IfI,atmyage, am ayoung lady,then what does that makeyou?”
Dear Miss Manners: Ilive in ahighrise in alargeretirementcommunity.Irun intovariousneighbors in the lobby, on thestoop andinthe
hallwayevery time Iamleaving or returning. Iamalways asked whereI am going or where Ihave been.I am notcomfortable sharing this information,but Idon’t want to be rude.How can Irespond?
Gentle reader: With acheery “Just out!” or “Running errands!” accompanied by asmile and awave —and no attempt to slow your gait forfollow-up questions.
Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mailtoMiss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City,MO 64106.
Drilling pilotholes to future-proof
Dear Heloise: When hanging up pictures,itisbest to drill apilot hole into theplaster for thenail before hammering it in. If one does not drill ahole, the plaster surface will splinter creating patch work if the picture is to be moved or taken down in thefuture. Ray, via email
TheArmyway
how to makeabunk with two flat sheets. The Army doesn’tuse fitted sheetsfor mattresses
Dear Heloise: Ispent nearly 25 years in theArmy, and one of the first thingsyou learn in basic training is
LEADERS
Continuedfrom page5C
and networking.
Oliver“Ozzie”Crocco was the administrative director of the program on LSU’scampus, alongwith SarahBecker, whowas the academic director.Thisyear wasthe university’s second year hosting the fellowship, andCrocco says they hope to host it again in the future.
“The fellows participated in aLeadership Institute for Civic Engagement. It was truly atwo-way exchange where they learned from leadersoforganizations in BatonRouge andshared their expertise,” he said.
For example, Moses Echodu, afellow from Uganda, shared his agricultural expertise during aservicevisit to the urban farming organization Baton Roots
At the program’sclosing ceremony,Crocco sangthe young leaders’ praises.
“For the last six weeks, youhavetruly made Baton Rouge and the USA abetter place,”hesaid.
Crocco went on to quote Frederick Buechner,an American author and theologian, to remind theyoung leadersofthe intersection of societal need andpersonal joy:“Your place in theworld is whereyour great gladness andthe world’sgreathunger meet.”
LSUwas one of 26 U.S. educational institutionsin 21 states to host Mandela Washington fellows.Roughly 620 Fellows areleaders in agriculture, business, civil society, education,energy, health care, social work, technology,trade,security and other fields.
The program at LSU concluded with agraduation ceremony on July 25 at the Global Community Center on campus where each fellow
TEENS
Continuedfrom page5C
accurate narrative as well.
To summarize
To makeyour bed theArmyway,you takeaflat sheet and place it even with thefoot of the bed. The excess sheet goes at the head of thebed, and you tuck it under the mattressand do hospital corners. The top sheet is done theoppositeway so that the sheet is even with thehead of the bed and the excess is tucked in at the
foot of the bed. This method can be used on any size bed using two flat sheets, eliminating the need forafitted sheet.
Joyce Williams, in North Little Rock, Arkansas
Shower safety
DearHeloise: When Iget ready to take ashower when I’m alone, Iplace atowel on the closed toilet seat with some of it hanging over the edge. Ilay my cellphone on the towel. If Ifall getting out of the shower,Ican just pull the towel down with my cellphone on it to call for help.
Ienjoy your columnevery day along with my breakfast. —Frances, via email Soak thebeans
Dear Heloise: For gas-free beans, soak 1pound of beans overnight with 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 1tablespoon of castor oil. The next day,drain well, rinse twoorthree times, and cook like you usually do. There’snogas at all and no change in the taste. Johnny, in Texas
Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.
2025 LSU Mandela Washington Fellows at LSUincluded: Israel Baelongandi, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Emma Kariuki,Kenya;AlidpAlli, Nigeria; Angemito Adel,Democratic Republic of the Congo; Skohar Samb,Senegal;Jessy Lugya,Uganda; ValerieChingonzo, Zimbabwe; Alpha Kabine Camara, Guinea; Ingiphile Zwane, Eswatini;KhadijahAbdulSamed, Ghana; Goitsemodimo Ditsele, Botswana; Serwaa BonsuEssel,Ghana; Chrystelle Murielle Ibiyemi Edjo, Benin; MulengaGraciano, Angola;KareyMwangi, Kenya; Fridolin Tranquille Abadet, Central AfricanRepublic; Martin Manyozo,Malawi; Ladi Musiba, Tanzania; Ahmed Moumine, Cameroon; MoiseWassete Mugnouna, Togo;OngeziweNxokwana, South Africa; Moses Echodu,Uganda; Derguene Mbaye, Senegal;Bilqees Shebby, Nigeria.
was introduced withashort, thoughtfulspeech highlighting their strengths and experiences in Louisiana.
For example, when BrandonDixon,one of theLSU program’sadministrators, introduced Ingiphile Zwane of Eswatini, he said: “This persontruly carries their country with them —not just in their passport, but in their voice and values. She made it hermissiontomakeEswatiniknown to theworld, and she certainly setthatprecedenthere. Sheknowshow to tune into aroom,making sure voices areheardsincerely—whether through storytelling, strategiccommunication, or herthoughtful presence. She reminds me that real leadership of-
Repeat back what you’re hearing the teen say.This simply means providing asummaryofwhat you’re hearing them say and how they feel about it.
This makes them feel “heard” and understood. I’ve learned over the years that people don’tlisten until they feel heard.
Connection is thegoal
Teens know you can’tfixtheir problems. What they want most from adults is to be with them in their situation.
ten starts with listening.”
IntroducingSerwaa Bonsu Essel of Ghana, Dixon said, “Ifyou ever doubt the power of one person to change lives, meet this next fellow They’re aclinicalforce, a maternal health advocate and the kind of person who builds bridges between communities, literallyworking across thegateway to Africa to makehealth care happen. They believe that giving a mother and baby hope is giving hope to ageneration.”
In total, the fellows contributed morethan 16 hours of community service each in Louisiana at various organizations where they also learnedabout leadership, service and community development.
When I’ve listened welltoateen, I’ve heard countless times now:“I just don’tfeel as alone in this,” or “It helps to know someone understands,” or “I know you don’tknow what it’s like to be me rightnow,but it meansa lot that you really tried to understand me andwhat I’m going through.”
When people feelheard, they feel connected, which is amajor goal for parentsand teensthroughout adolescence as they begin to pull away ‘How canIhelp?’
In addition to this, you might also ask, “Are you wanting any advice or anything else from me?”This gives theteen the chancetorecognize that you appreciatethe difficulty of their situation. Beforegiving advice, acknowledge that their experience is fardifferent from yours at their age. Youmight
Several fellowsexpressed the deep affectiontheyfelt toward Louisiana, developed over the six weeks this summer.They noted strongties between the Bayou state and sub-Saharan Africa, especially in addressing poverty, health care, water and illiteracy
“Overall, I’d say that learning about leadership and civic engagementcannot simply come from books or lectures; it must be lived, acted outand practiced,” Crocco said. “This fellowship allowedthese young leaders from across Africa to grow and serve Louisiana in the process.”
Email Jan Risheratjan. risher@theadvocate.com.
even add, “You know,asI listen to you, Ican honestly say my experiences were different from yours. It’s alot harder in someways being ateen today.” This validates their unique experience. Most of the time, teens will say,“Nothing you can really do, but thanks forlistening.” At that point, you might say,“If there’ssomething you think Ican do to help, please let me know.”
If you really think offering advice would help, you might say,“Ihave someideas about this situation. If and when you’d like to hear them,let me know.” Then, when you do, keep your comments brief and to the point. These tips won’t stop all the drama, but practicing them will deepen your relationship with them and help them navigate these tumultuous and uncertain years.
Hints from Heloise
STAFF PHOTO By JANRISHER
LEo (July 23-Aug.22) It's up to you to createopportunities that help achieve your vision. Waiting for someone to do things for you will be your downfall, as it gives others the chance to upstage you.
VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Refuse to let someone's playful attitude infringe on what's important to you. Don'taccommodate others; only change what works for you, andyou'll maintainrespect and freedom of choice.
LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Think before you act. Too muchofanything will drag you down. Avoid the temptation to indulge in excessivebehavior. Paymore attentiontoyour surroundings, and be gratefulfor what you have.
scoRPIo (oct.24-nov. 22) Participate in something thatconcerns you. Force isn't theanswer, but showing up to support yourbeliefs canmakea difference. Achoice will lead to confusion.
sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Put more time and effort into your surroundings. Maintaining acost-efficient and functional home will give you the incentive to share your space with friends and family.
cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Verbalize your feelings and agenda. Take theinitiative to share your dreamsand plans with someone whomatters to you. The input you receive will help youdetermine how to balance theneedsofthose you love.
AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) You'll find yourself going back and forth. Follow
the path that feels best for you. Refuse to let anyone railroad you into somethingyou don'twanttodo. It's time to take responsibility for your happiness.
PIscEs (Feb. 20-March20) Stop guessing; when in doubt, ask. Don'tbeshy or reluctant to infringe on others for answers. Knowing how others think or feel will make your choices easier.
ARIEs(March21-April19) Concentrate on health, finances and paperwork. Reaching out and helping someone or addressing acause that concernsyou will get you in touch with fascinating insight and information.
TAuRus (April20-May 20) Consider your professional options. Achange may not be something you relish, but it may be in your best interest. Soothe your emotions by heading in adirection that puts your mindatease.
GEMInI(May21-June 20) Getinto the mainstream where the action is,and see for yourself. Knowing right from wrong, truth from fiction and what's best for you will help you makebetter choices.
cAncER (June 21-July 22) Askquestions, and refrain from agreeing to something you cannot deliver. Focus your energy on homeimprovements and addressing issues that makelife difficult.
InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place thenumbers 1to9inthe empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains thesame number only once. The difficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.
Puzzle Answer
THewiZard oF id
BLondie
BaBY BLueS Hi and LoiS
By PHILLIP ALDER Bridge
Matt Drudge, creator of theDrudge Report, said, “The Internet feeds off the main press, and the main press feeds off the Internet. They’re working in tandem.” That sounds likegood defenders, who work in tandem to defeat declarer.
The contract is three no-trump. West leadsfourth-highestfromhislongestand strongest, the diamond four. How should East andWest card after that?
Southstarts with seven top tricks: two spades and five clubs. And since there are three winners available from hearts, things look promising for him. However, with diamonds 5-3, not 4-4, thedefenders can succeed.
Suppose Southplays low from the board at trick one. After East wins with his queen, he mustreturn the diamond seven,thehigheroftworemainingcards. Southshouldnowplayhisjack,thehigher of touchinghonors from the closed hand. But West shouldnot be fooled. He should knowthatifEasthadbegunwithQ-10-7-2 of diamonds, he would have led back the two, lowfrom aremaining tripleton. So West,since he has no entry, should duck this trick,playinghis three and keeping communication with hispartner.
South wins on the board andcalls for aheart, but East should grab the trick with his ace and lead hislast diamond, giving his sideone heart andfourdiamonds.EvenifSouthwinswithdummy’s diamond king at trick oneand calls for the heart jack, trying to look like someoneplanningafinesse,Eastshouldnotbe fooled. He should win with hisace, cash thediamond queen, and play his third diamond.
